LAHORE: In line with the government’s austerity measures announced recently, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Sunday reduced the number of venues from eight to just two for the 11th edition of the HBL Pakistan Super League starting later this month besides keeping fans away from the stadiums for the same.
The matches, which were originally to be held at six venues including Lahore, Karachi, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad, Multan and Peshawar, will now be staged only in Lahore and Karachi.
The said decisions were made in view of the surge in fuel prices in the aftermath of Iran’s ongoing military conflict with Israel and the United States that has affected global oil supply chain particularly as a result of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
“The [PSL] matches will be played without crowd at the stadiums until the current situation of war continues in the region. However, no change is made in the start of the PSL which is March 26,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi, flanked by PSL chief executive Salman Naseer, said at a hurriedly-called media conference in Lahore on Sunday.
The PCB chief continued, “To reduce the travelling of the participating teams the matches will be held only in Lahore and Karachi and there will be no opening ceremony for the same reason of austerity.”
The PCB had announced to hold this year’s edition featuring eight teams, from six in the past, at six venues.
The Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad and the Imran Khan Cricket Stadium, Peshawar were scheduled to host PSL games for the very first time this year.
“We were very happy over the inclusion of Peshawar and Faisalabad as venues but sadly the plan has not clicked but the PCB will hold more matches in the coming season there,” Mohsin stated.
“These decisions [regarding PSL] were taken after consulting the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who is also the patron of the PCB.”
According to Mohsin, the PCB will compensate the losses of the eight franchises, which they will face due to no gate-money.
“[Moreover] those [fans] who have bought tickets of the PSL matches will get their money back within 72 hours.”
It may be mentioned here that it is not the first time that the PSL matches would be held behind closed doors as it also happened in its two editions held in 2020 and 2021 due to Covid-19 virus.
NO SECURITY ISSUE
Mohsin said that the arrival of the foreign players to compete in the PSL was to start later on Sunday, and insisted that there was no security-related issue as Pakistan was completely safe for all contestants.
“As the government had taken several steps to save energy resources amid rise in fuel prices, the gathering of big crowds at the venues to watch PSL matches was against that austerity campaign,” the PCB chief underlined.
To a question, Mohsin said that legal action would be taken against those foreign players, who left the PSL and joined the Indian Premier League (IPL).
“We will take [legal] action against those players according to the rules,” he said. “There was a case last year too, and the same thing will happen this time.”
The PCB chief was referring to South African cricketer Corbin Bosch, who represented Peshawar Zalmi in the 2025 PSL before making a late switch to Mumbai Indians. As a result, Bosch was banned for one year from the PSL.
Some foreign players have joined the IPL this year too after allegedly breaching their contracts with the PSL franchises.
According to media reports, Zimbabwe pacer Blessing Muzarabani left Islamabad United and joined the Kolkata Knight Riders while Sri Lanka’s Dasun Shanaka left Lahore Qalandars to play for Rajasthan Royals.
This year’s IPL begins in India two days after the PSL’s scheduled start on March 26.
Answering a question, Mohsin dismissed the notion that the overlapping schedules of the two leagues was the primary reason for some players opting out.
“The [PSL schedule] clash with the IPL is not a problem because if players are leaving for the IPL, we are getting excellent players coming here as well. We could not afford to postpone the PSL because we have no other window available all year,” the PCB chief stated.
Speaking on the occasion, Salman assured that as soon as the conditions improved, the stadiums would be opened for spectators.
Later on Sunday, the PCB announced that Lahore and Karachi will hold 22 matches each of the PSL 11.
“The opening match between Hyderabad Kingsmen and Lahore Qalandars remains intact, while Lahore will also see Eliminator 1, 2 and the final. [The] Qualifier will be played in Karachi,” a press release issued by the PCB said.
Published in Dawn, March 23rd, 2026
