June 22, 2008	Sunday	Jamadi-us-Sani 17, 1429

LAHORE, June 21: The Pakistan Premier League (PPL) on Saturday was renamed Twenty20 Super League by the Pakistan Cricket Board, which is hoping to stage the event sometime in September next year.

“We have had meetings with two international companies interested in the event and we are confident international companies will buy franchises in the Twenty20 league,” PCB Chairman Dr Nasim Ashraf said after a meeting of the Board’s governing body here on Saturday.

The league is Pakistan’s answer to the Indian Premier League (IPL) which was a massive success recently, combining cricket with Bollywood stars and corporate money.

Apart from this, the PCB governing body has also decided against sacking the national senior team’s Australian coach Geoff Lawson, who has come under scathing criticism for the side’s inconsistent performance.

The body also approved a budget of Rs3.9 billion for the current fiscal year with plans to build 35 new grounds in the country and renovate existing ones.

The governing body also decided against instituting any inquiry into the sacking of senior board official Saleem Altaf recently over allegations that he leaked confidential information of the board to the media.

“The matter was discussed by the members and the body feels there is no need for further investigations in the sacking case of Saleem Altaf,” Dr Nasim said.—Agencies