KARACHI: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced on Saturday it will offer full-match commentary in Urdu for the first time in the history of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) this year, saying the move will make the tournament more accessible to a wider national audience.
Cricket commentary in Pakistan was long delivered in both Urdu and English, especially during the golden era of radio and early television. Legendary commentators like Omar Kureishi and Chishti Mujahid often switched between the two languages or provided parallel coverage.
Urdu commentary was particularly prominent on Radio Pakistan, helping bring the game closer to the masses and expanding its reach across the country.
“Fans will now be able to follow live broadcasts in Urdu, allowing them to enjoy the excitement and action of PSL matches in Pakistan’s national language,” the PCB said in a statement. “This initiative strengthens our connection with the millions of cricket lovers who have long awaited this addition.”
The upcoming edition of the HBL PSL will run from April 11 to May 18 across four cities — Lahore, Karachi, Multan and Rawalpindi.
The PCB said details regarding broadcast arrangements and commentary panels for both Urdu and English will be announced in due course.
PCB Chief Executive Officer Salman Naseer called it a “historic moment” for the league and its expanding fanbase.
He said cricket was a unifying force in Pakistan, and by offering commentary in Urdu throughout the tournament, the PCB aimed to bring the excitement and energy of the PSL closer to fans across the country.
Pakistan to offer full Urdu commentary for PSL this year to reach wider audience
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Pakistan to offer full Urdu commentary for PSL this year to reach wider audience
- Cricket commentary was once offered in both Urdu and English during radio and early TV’s golden era
- A senior PCB official calls Urdu commentary a ‘historic moment’ for the league and its growing fanbase
Pakistan parliamentary panel discusses rollout of local messaging app for officials next year
- Officials say ‘Beep’ aims to provide a secure, locally built messaging platform for government use
- The committee voices dissatisfaction with Internet services, calls for fair 5G spectrum auction
ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani parliamentary committee on Tuesday discussed plans to roll out a locally developed messaging application for government officials next year, even as lawmakers voiced strong dissatisfaction with the country’s Internet services during a hearing marked by complaints over poor connectivity.
Local media reported that the proposed app for secure official communication came up during a meeting of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication, where members also raised concerns about sluggish mobile Internet speeds and the performance of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).
Pakistani officials announced last year that local engineers had developed and successfully tested a government messaging platform intended to reduce reliance on foreign applications and strengthen data security. The National Information Technology Board (NITB) said the application — known as Beep — had been successfully undergoing trial runs since 2023.
“The purpose of launching Beep is to provide a secure messaging platform for public sector employees nationwide,” NITB Chief Executive Faisal Iqbal Ratyal told the committee during the hearing, according to Pakistan’s English-language broadsheet Dawn, expressing hope that the project would meet its June 30, 2026 deadline.
In an official statement issued after the meeting, the committee praised the National Information Technology Board, calling its performance commendable and its projects aligned with the broader national interest.
The statement said the committee also expressed dissatisfaction with the PTA’s performance, noting that complaints raised in successive meetings largely related to the quality of Internet services and that no significant improvement had been observed so far.
It said official assessments portraying services as satisfactory did not reflect ground realities, as the public faced “severe difficulties” accessing Internet services, with connectivity in some areas described as almost non-existent.
Lawmakers also called for the forthcoming 5G spectrum auction to be conducted in a fair and transparent manner, reiterated that the auction should be held in Pakistani rupees and said spectrum prices should not be set unnecessarily high.
Any concessions granted to telecom operators, the committee said, must be tied to improvements in network and infrastructure.
Pakistani users across the country have frequently complained of sluggish 4G Internet connections in recent months, citing disruptions to calls on messaging platform WhatsApp.
Last year, media reports said the government was installing an Internet firewall to monitor and regulate online content, prompting concern among digital rights activists.
The PTA has rejected assertions that a national firewall was responsible for disruptions, saying in September that slow Internet speeds were due to outdated infrastructure and rising data consumption.
