LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced details of the Fazal Mahmood National Club Championship on Friday, two days after its beginning.

The event swung into action on Wednesday.

According to the details given in a press release issued by the PCB on Friday, as many as 98 districts of the country are included in the programme.

“Matches are currently being staged in 30 districts. The tournament is set to engage club players and aim to revive club cricket in the country with a massive campaign which is previously unmatched.

“All the 98 districts will start hosting matches in the upcoming days,” the press release said.

“The first stage is a knockout one while matches will be played on both group and league basis in the second stage.

“In the third stage, inter-district matches, and in the fourth, inter-regional matches, both on group and league basis, will be played.

“A total of 2,836 clubs from Pakistan will showcase their skills this year and some 5,000 matches are expected to be staged across the country.

“At the end of the tournament, there will be 98 district champions and eventually 16 regional champions.

“Two pools comprising eight teams each at the inter-regional event will be formed and a national champion will emerge after the final.

“The programme will have direct access to 45,000 cricketers registered in clubs across the country. The players will be registered in a central database developed by the PCB,” the press release further said.

Published in Dawn, April 8th, 2017