Picture Credit: PCB
In a recent development, all the six Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchises have reportedly asked the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to move the remaining matches of the rescheduled 2021 edition of the tournament out of Karachi to the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This is because there has been another surge in the number of COVID-19 cases in Pakistan. An official letter written by the franchises was sent to the board last week and the board is reportedly considering the request.
As of now, the teams are set to meet in Karachi by 23 May, where they begin their mandatory seven-day quarantine. Meanwhile, the action is set to resume on June 2. As many as 16 league matches are slotted, with the Playoffs set to happen between 16 and 18 June. The final of PSL 2021 is scheduled for 20 June.
Close to 4500 COVID-19 cases in Pakistan on weekly average
Although things are planned as per the abovementioned schedule, the country has close to 4500 COVID-19 cases on a seven-day average. Several places in the country are putting stricter curbs like lockdowns with the highest caseload ever since the inception of the pandemic. This is the reason to worry for PSL, since the tournament has already been pushed back once after 14 matches played between 20 February and 3 March.