PSL match postponed after Islamabad United's Fawad Ahmed tests positive for Covid-19

Published March 1, 2021
Islamabad United will face Quetta Gladiators in Tuesday's PSL match. — PSL/File
Islamabad United will face Quetta Gladiators in Tuesday's PSL match. — PSL/File

The Pakistan Super League 2021 match scheduled for Monday was put off by a day after a player from the Islamabad United squad tested positive for the coronavirus.

The match between United and Quetta Gladiators will now be played on Tuesday (tomorrow) at 7pm.

An hour before the match was about to commence, the Pakistan Cricket Board on Twitter said "a player from one of the sides featuring in this evening’s match has tested positive. The player had [shown] symptoms two days ago and had been immediately isolated."

It added that other members of the player's team had tested negative, while the players of the other side were being tested.

Islamabad United later identified the player as its bowler Fawad Ahmed. It confirmed that all other Islamabad United players and members had tested negative and had been "cleared to play".

"We wish Fawad a speedy recovery," it tweeted.

At the time, United had said their match against the Gladiators, which was scheduled to start at 7pm today, would now begin at 9pm.

"All other teams are currently undergoing tests. Islamabad United are cleared to play," it said.

However, the PCB later announced that the match had been rescheduled for Tuesday at 7pm.

It said the test results of both Quetta Gladiators and Islamabad United squads had returned negative.

"This (postponement) is being done to ensure [the] players from both sides get time to prepare for the game," it tweeted, adding that tickets purchased for Monday would be valid tomorrow.

Last month, a player from one of the PSL 6 franchises had tested positive for Covid-19, while another player and an official had been placed in a three-day quarantine after violating bio-security protocols, the PCB had said, without identifying the trio.

Opinion

Editorial

Exit strategy
Updated 18 Mar, 2026

Exit strategy

MOST members of the international community, particularly states in the greater Middle East, are gravely concerned...
Unsafe trains
18 Mar, 2026

Unsafe trains

SUNDAY’S accident involving the Shalimar Express has once again brought into sharp focus the deep structural and...
Disappointment in Dhaka
18 Mar, 2026

Disappointment in Dhaka

FOR a side looking for lift-off after a disappointing T20 World Cup, it was despair for Shaheen Shah Afridi’s ...
Missing in action
17 Mar, 2026

Missing in action

NOT exactly known for playing a proactive role in protecting the interests of Muslim nations and populations...
Risk to stability
Updated 17 Mar, 2026

Risk to stability

THE risks to Pakistan’s fragile economic recovery from the US-Israel war on Iran cannot be dismissed. Yet the...
Enrolment push
17 Mar, 2026

Enrolment push

THE federal government has embarked upon the welcome initiative to enrol 25,000 out-of-school children in Islamabad...