Lahore Qalandars
 | |
| League: | Pakistan Super League |
|---|---|
| Captain: | Brendon McCullum |
| Coach: | Paddy Upton |
| City: | Lahore |
| Colors: |
 |
| Owner: | QALCO (Qatar Oil and Lubricants Company Rana Fawad) |
| Founded: | 2015 |
| Official website: | lahoreqalandars.com |
Lahore Qalandars (Urdu: لاہور قلندرز; Punjabi: لہور قلندرز) is a Pakistani professional cricket franchise which plays in the Pakistan Super League. It nominally represents Lahore in the league.[1][2] The team is owned by Qatar Lubricants Company, Ltd. The team is currently captained by Brendon McCullum and coached by Paddy Upton, a former South African cricketer. Lahore Qalandars was the second most expensive franchise and was one of the few teams sold to an international company.
Franchise history
In 2015, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced that the inaugural season of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) would take place in February 2016 in the United Arab Emirates.[3] On 3 December 2015, the PCB unveiled the owners of five city-based franchises. The Lahore franchise was sold to the Qatar Lubricants Company for US$24 Million for a span of ten years,[4][5] making it the second most expensive team of PSL (after The Karachi Kings, which sold for US$26 million).[3][4]
In 2016, the Lahore Qalandars franchise organised "Jazz Rising Stars" trials across eight Pakistani cities, to identify upcoming youth talent. Shortlisted players would travel to Australia and train with Sydney Thunder, while the top two performers would get the opportunity to play for the Qalandars.[6] During the programme an ambidextrous fast bowler, Yasir Jan from Rawalpindi, was identified by former Pakistan fast bowler Aqib Javed.[7]
2016 Season
After drafting star players such as Chris Gayle, Umar Akmal, Dwayne Bravo, Azhar Ali and Yasir Shah in the initial player draft, the Qalandars started the tournament with two consecutive losses against Karachi Kings and Peshawar Zalmi.[8][9][10][11] Their first victory came against Quetta Gladiators
The team won only two of their eight group stage matches, although they could still have qualified for the play-off section of the tournament if they had won their final group game against Islamabad United. A loss by five wickets saw Qalanders finish last in the first edition of the league. Despite playing only seven games, Umar Akmal was the highest run scorer of the tournament and won the 'Best Batsman' award for his 335 runs with four fifties. During the finals, Qalandars were given the "Spirit of The Game" award for showing the best sportsmanship throughout the tournament.[12]
2017 season
Lahore Qalandars icon player in the first season of the PSL Chris Gayle was traded for Sohail Tanvir of the Karachi Kings during the off-season trade window.[13] Sohaib Maqsood was also traded for Aamer Yamin of Peshawar Zalmi.[14] In September 2016, the team also signed New Zealand's former captain Brendon McCullum as their new captain during the off-season.[15]
During the 2017 PSL players draft, Lahore picked a number of new players, including bowlers Yasir Shah and Sunil Narine. The team retained players such as Umar Akmal, Azhar Ali and Dwayne Bravo.[16]
Team identity
The Lahore franchise was launched on 12 December 2015 by owner Fawad Rana. The "Q" in the Qalandars was linked to both represent both Qatar and QALCO[17] and Rana added that the name was chosen to highlight the Sufi culture of Lahore – "Qalandar" is a common term used in Pakistan to describe Sufi mystics or saints whose shrines attract millions of devotees and tourists. The team's logo features a Sufi performing the famous Sufi whirling with three stumps to his right and a cricket ball in the bottom, and is meant to represent the Sufi culture of the region[18]
The Qalandars' kit colors are red and black, which are prominently depicted in their logo. Mobilink was the team's first shirt sponsor and the title sponsor for the franchise.[19] Alkaram, a Textile Mill situated in Karachi, was announced as another sponsor[19] and the media partner of the team is Geo Tv.
Lahore Qalandars' official song was sung by Pakistani musician Asrar. The theme song was used by the franchise to promote the team on social media and was played during the opening ceremony when the team made its first entrance.
Current squad
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Players with international caps are listed in bold.
- denotes a player who is currently unavailable for selection.
- denotes a player who is unavailable for rest of the season.
- As of 20 October 2016
| Name | Nat. | Batting Style | Bowling Style | Joined | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saif Badar |  | Right-hand | Legbreak, Googly | 2017 | ||
| Azhar Ali | | Right-hand | Right-Arm Legbreak | 2016 | ||
| Brendon McCullum |  | Right-hand | Right-arm Medium | 2017 | Overseas/Captain/Batting Mentor | |
| Cameron Delport |  | Left hand | Right-arm Medium | 2016 | Overseas | |
| Fakhar Zaman | | Left-hand | Left-arm Orthodox spin | 2017 | ||
| All-rounders | ||||||
| Bilawal Bhatti | | Right-hand | Right-arm Fast | 2017 | ||
| Anton Devcich | | Left-hand | Left-arm slow Orthodox | 2017 | Overseas | |
| Usman Qadir | | Left-hand | Right-arm Leg-break | 2017 | ||
| Dwayne Bravo |  | Right-hand | Right-arm Medium-fast | 2016 | Overseas | |
| Sohail Tanvir | | Left-Hand | Left-arm Medium-fast | 2017 | ||
| Aamer Yamin | | Right-Hand | Right-arm Medium-fast | 2017 | ||
| Grant Elliott | | Right-hand | Right-arm Fast Medium | 2017 | Overseas | |
| Wicket-keepers | ||||||
| Mohammad Rizwan | | Right-hand | — | 2016 | ||
| Umar Akmal | | Right-hand | — | 2016 | ||
| Bowlers | ||||||
| Ghulam Mudassar | | Right-hand | Left-arm Fast-Medium | 2017 | ||
| Shaun Tait |  | Right-hand | Right-arm Fast | 2017 | Overseas | |
| Sunil Narine | | Left-hand | Right-arm off-spin | 2017 | Overseas | |
| Yasir Shah | | Right-hand | Right-arm Leg-spin | 2017 | ||
| Zafar Gohar | | Left-hand | SlowerLeft-arm Orthodox | 2016 | ||
| Mohammad Irfan | | Left-hand | Right-arm Leg Spin | 2017 | ||
Management and coaching staff
| Name | Position |
|---|---|
| Rana Fawad | Owner |
| Rana Atif |
CEO |
| Rana Sameen |
Manager |
| Paddy Upton |
Head Coach/Fitness Trainer |
| Shahid Aslam |
Assistant Coach |
| Shawn Bradstreet |
Fielding Coach |
| Aqib Javed |
Director[20] |
| Mudassar Nazar |
Advisor & Icon |
| Ijaz Ahmed |
Batting Coach & Consultant |
| John Gloster |
Physio |
Captains
| No. | Nat | Player | From | To | Mat | Won | Lost | tie | NR | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
Azhar Ali | 2016 | 2016 | 7 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 28.57 |
| 2 | |
Dwayne Bravo | 2016 | 2016 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 00.00 |
Result summary
| Year | Pld | Won | Loss | NR | Tied | SR(%) | Position | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 25.00% | 5th | Group Stage |
Head-to-head record
| Opposition | Span | Mat | Won | Lost | Tied | NR | Success Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Islamabad United | 2016–present | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.00% |
 Karachi Kings | 2016–present | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.00% |
 Peshawar Zalmi | 2016–present | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 50.00% |
 Quetta Gladiators | 2016–present | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 50.00% |
References
- ↑ "Cricket fans in Qatar now cheer for Lahore Qalandars". Retrieved 13 December 2015.
- ↑ "Cricket fans in Qatar can now cheer for Lahore Qalandars!". Gulf Times. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
- 1 2 "Pakistan Super League: PCB will earn 93 million approx 10 million rs in ten years from PSL auction". 7 December 2015. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
- 1 2 "Pakistan Super League: Seven Companies fight it out to buy franchises". Express Tribune. 3 December 2015. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
- ↑ "Pakistan Super League – Tribune Labs". Retrieved 8 September 2016.
- ↑ "Rapid ambidextrous quick discovered". Cricket Australia. 20 September 2016. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
- ↑ http://aaj.tv/2016/10/pakistans-ambidextrous-bowler-pushes-boundaries/AAJ News, 2016-10-20. Retrieved 2016-10-21.
- ↑ "Qalandars felt Yasir, Mustafizur's absence in PSL: Lahore Owner". Retrieved 8 September 2016.
- ↑ http://espncricinfo.com//ci/engine/match/959177.html/, ESPN CricInfo, 2016-02-05. Retrieved 2016-02-27.
- ↑ http://dunyanews.tv/en/Cricket/321350-PSL-T20-Karachi-Kings-win-toss-choose-to-field-a/, DunyaNewsPakistan, 2016-02-05. Retrieved 2016-02-27.
- ↑ http://tribune.com.pk/story/1041590/live-lahore-qalandars-vs-peshawar-zalmi/, Express Tribune, 2016-02-06 Retrieved 2016-02-27.
- ↑ http://tribune.com.pk/story/1053169/islamabad-crowned-psl-champions/, ""Express Tribune"" 2016-02-23. Retrieved 2016-05-23.
- ↑ http://tribune.com.pk/story/1184862/psl-2017-sangakkara-released-quetta-gayle-traded-lahore/Express Tribune, 2016-09-20. Retrieved 2016-09-20.
- ↑ http://socialsports360.com/trading-in-psl/Social Sports 360, 2016-10-06. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ↑ http://dailytimes.com.pk/sports/20-Sep-16/qalandars-sign-mccullum-as-new-captain/Daily times, 2016-09-20. Retrieved 2016-09-20.
- ↑ https://www.thenewstribe.com/2016/10/20/psl-2017-lahore-qalandars-final-squad-psl-second-edition/Daily times, 2016-10-20. Retrieved 2016-10-20.
- ↑ http://m.gulf-times.com/story/466262/Cricket-fans-in-Qatar-can-now-cheer-for-Lahore-Qal/, ""Gulf Times"" 2016-12-15. Retrieved 2016-02-11.
- ↑ http://pslfantasy.com/news/Lahore-Qalandar-unveil-logo-for-psl/, ""Cric Tale"" 2016-12-15. Retrieved 2016-02-11.
- 1 2 http://phoneworld.com.pk/mobilink-announces-its-partnership-with-lahore-qalandars-for-psl/, ""Phone World"" 2016-01-30. Retrieved 2016-02-11.
- ↑ http://tribune.com.pk/story/1088518/aaqib-javed-resigns-from-uae-coaching-joins-psl-franchise/, ""The Express Tribune"" 2016-04-20. Retrieved 2016-04-21
- ↑ "PSL Points Table 2016". PSL T20. Retrieved 2016-02-07.
External links
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