ISLAMABAD: Pakistani cricket fans seem to be divided over the much-awaited official anthem of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) that was released on Saturday, with many netizens urging the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to bring back singer Ali Zafar’s songs to the tournament.
Since its inception, the league has followed the tradition of releasing an official anthem. Many of these songs gained tremendous popularity among people and ultimately acquired a life of their own that was independent of the tournament. Each year, franchises also compose their own anthems to promote themselves among their fans.
Zafar sang two famous anthems for the league in 2016 and 2017. He also sang the anthem for Islamabad United in 2016 and created an unofficial PSL song in 2020, which became an instant hit.
But as the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) released this year’s song ‘Sab Sitaray Humaray’ featuring Shae Gill, Asim Azhar and Faris Shafi, many Pakistani cricket fans did not seem to be impressed by it.
Reacting to the tweet, a user named Mohammad Hazran asked the league to bring Zafar back along with singer Ali Sethi.
“Bring Ali Zafar and Ali Sethi [to sing] PSL Anthem,” he wrote, posting a video of the 2017 PSL anthem ‘ab khel jamay ga’ that was sung by Zafar.
Ehtisham Siddique posted a picture of Zafar and implied that the singer did a much better job.
Tahir Hussain suggested letting Chahat Fateh Ali Khan, who is quite popular for his singing and style on social media, sing the anthem would have been a “better option.”
“What a useless song!” he wrote. “PSL organizers should be ashamed of themselves. Allowing Chahat Fateh Ali Khan could have been a better option than his.”
“Faris, Asim, and Shae disappointed [us]. Ali Zafar never did,” Hammad Siddiqui wrote in a tweet.
On the other hand, some users also appreciated this year’s anthem.
“Not bad, in fact, better than last year,” Asad Nisar said of the anthem.
Another user questioned the critics, saying that it would sound good when played in the stadium.
“Why some [are] criticiz[ing] this? but I’m loving it,” he wrote.
The opening ceremony of the PSL will be held in Multan on Monday, followed by the opening match between the home team, Multan Sultans, and the defending champions, Lahore Qalandars.
Group matches will be held in a double round-robin format before the top four teams qualify for the playoffs.
The tournament is expected to have a large viewership across the country and among South Asians living in other parts of the world like in all the previous seasons.
