The 50-over domestic competition held by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has been renamed the Champions One-Day Cup. Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Rizwan, Shadab Khan, Saud Shakeel, and Mohammad Haris have been named as the five leaders of the teams that will compete for the coveted crown.
The top players from Pakistan will lead the Lions, Wolves, Panthers, Dolphins, and Stallions, in that order. Rauf’s suitability for the T20 format was previously declared by the management; nonetheless, the pacer was left out of the T20 World Cup 2024 roster and did not make the T20I squad.
Despite having a tense relationship with PCB, Rauf has been named captain of the team and Shoaib Malik has been named mentor of the Stallions.
Every member of the Pakistani squad will take the stage because there isn’t an international itinerary that conflicts with the competition. Misbah Ul Haq, the Wolves coach, said that any players who are judged unfit will not be included in the team.
The appointment of former Pakistani legends as advisors for a domestic competition
It is noteworthy that the playoffs will take the place of the customary semifinal format, and the competition will run from September 12 to September 29. Even though the team names aren’t prefixed or suffixed, it seems sense that the affixes will be Lahore for the Lions, Karachi for the Dolphins, Peshawar for the Panthers, Faisalabad for the Wolves, and Sialkot for the Stallions.
Also Read: Waqar Younis to coach Lions for Champions One-Day Cup 2024
In addition to Misbah and Malik coaching their own teams, Waqar Younis will coach the Lions, while Saqlain Mushtaq will coach the Panthers. Pakistan’s first Test match against touring England will take place eight days after the competition ends.