The PSL 8 has already seen some thrilling games

As the nation tries to come to grips with the increased taxation and rising inflation, and despondency has set in with little to cheer, the Pakistan Super League (PSL) seems to be that oasis in the desert of hopelessness.

Some may counter that it is more of a mirage rather than an oasis in reality. Whatever, it is pleasantly distracting the Pakistanis, or at least those with even a modicum of interest in the sport, from the direness of the economic, political and social environment.

That the first two games were absolute nail-biters has helped lift the tempo from the beginning even though the opening ceremony was a bit flat and not quite matched the hype that had been built around it.

The dances seemed not so well choreographed and seemed forced. Not enough dancing talent either. Perhaps less practice time and at least one group came out as if from the street outside.

Maybe the idea was to show the character of the street and it has been done before, launched by none other than the great (and late) Michael Jackson. But when it’s not so well executed the different ensembles just don’t gel and they didn’t here.

And while the HBL (premier sponsor of the competition) President and CEO, Mr. Muhammad Aurangzeb, came out confident, mature and assured even in an extempore speech touching on the right chords, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman chose sadly to play the rouser and the populist, something not becoming of the stature of the position he holds.

Najam Sethi can hold his own in a refined speech, even if unrehearsed or unwritten, and would have been better advised to go that route.

This was not a kids’ birthday party and yes neither was it a sombre occasion. The creators of the event could have taken a cue from the FIFA opening ceremony where there was not much flamboyance but a philosophy and concept coming out of it.

Do it on a smaller scale of course, but do it with a certain thought. The only element that stayed with me was the intensity with which Aima Beg sang the national anthem. Perhaps she set the taste bar so high that every activity that followed seemed half-baked.

It is Murphy’s Law that when something is supposed to go wrong, it will. And it couldn’t have finished worse than when one of the light towers caught fire from the fireworks at than end of the ceremony.

Look, it was clearly a misfiring blast from the top of the stadium and the chances of that happening would be minimal. You can’t really blame anyone for that happening. It was just a freakish happening.

But what was not an accident was that it could have been better handled and communicated. There was no official notification or press release and those sitting away from the stadium had no idea why the toss was not happening at the designated time. As it is the opening ceremony was delayed by almost half an hour, also without any clear explanation.

It was Twitter that broke the story as it showed photographs of the tower with a small fire in the area of the bulb and the fire brigade dousing it. But as we waited for the toss and so did Cricinfo and the official broadcasters, Twitter again astounded everyone with a photograph of the captains as they were tossing the coin.

Possibly the only explanation can be that when the tower caught fire, the generators that fired the broadcast van would have been switched off as a precaution and didn’t come back in time for the toss to be covered.

So yes, a lot went wrong from the word go, some of which could not be helped but most could have been. It was then left to the players themselves to put all this chaos behind them and put on a show that lived up to its billing. And not just the first game but two at that, in both Multan and Karachi.

Still, in the first game at least we can still see the signs of everything that is wrong with Pakistan’s T20 approach. That came in Multan’s chase against Lahore Qalandars and again in the third game against Quetta Gladiators.

The first was a match that the chasers should have won but again the openers – Rizwan one of them as for Pakistan – lost the plot. As when playing for Pakistan, the priority seemed to be the protection of wickets.

Thankfully there was a slightly more sense of urgency in the powerplay but without a wicket falling and yet no boundary in the next five overs is absolutely criminal in this format, no matter at what stage the game is at when chasing.

In the next game, the third of the tournament, against the Gladiators, Rizwan finished with 28 off 34 balls. Yes, Rossouw was firing away and Sultans rocked home with some seven overs to spare.

But that doesn’t mean you drop anchor at the other end and just keep giving the other batter the strike. This otherwise becomes a habit and also plays on your self-confidence.

In the second game between Karachi Kings and Peshawar Zalmi, Imad Wasim showed up the selectors in the past year with what they have been missing, possibly deliberately.

Yes, he did go for three sixes in an over and finished with an embarrassing 42 off 3 overs. But his batting when he picked up the team in tatters at 4 down for 46 and then to take them to within 2 runs of the 199 that Zalmi had put up showed the temperament and mental strength, not to mention his skills that Pakistan have been short of in the middle-order.

They have tried Asif Ali, Khushdil Shah and Iftikhar Ahmed but not him, simply because they have closeted him as an alternative only to Mohammad Nawaz; both bowl left-arm spin and bat 6/7.

As I have been writing what’s the harm in playing Imad as a batsman considering his class and skill level? Not too far to look for at the international level either.

His innings to fetch a victory against Afghanistan in the 50-over 2019 World Cup when all seemed lost should have ensured a permanent stay.

Still, the selectors opted for the max 11-ball wonder like Asif or the hesitant Khushdil. Even now, with the new selection panel in place, there can be a reconsideration. It all depends though on Sethi who actually makes the policies on selection; Haroon & Co will simply execute it.

By policy I mean whether cricketers like Mohammad Amir — who’s been having a quarrel with the PCB across the last two administrations — and Imad, who’s been persona non grata of sorts because of some insecurity elsewhere, are given the green light for selection for the forthcoming white-ball series against New Zealand this spring when the Kiwis return to play 5 ODIs and 5 T20s.

Frankly, I wouldn’t be too excited about Amir. It would have been acceptable if he was not the bowler he was in 2010, but he’s not even the bowler he was three years ago.

He’s lost pace which is OK if you’re getting the seam and swing, but Amir is not getting that either the past couple of years. On top of that, his attitude hurts. To call out Babar at the peak of his form when he himself is in the depths was ludicrous and so it proved as he got a hammering with over 40 runs in his 4 overs in Karachi on Tuesday.

Again there was no bite in his bowling. Yes, he’ll bowl a couple of good spells and take wickets but then so is everyone else doing that. I believe his time is gone.

And when you see someone like Ihsanullah, you have to bury the memories of 2010. This 20-year-old bowled at not just good speed but also made the ball bounce. In that first game, he was slightly expensive as he pitched the ball up but once he got this length going in the second he was simply unplayable.

Have Pakistan found another strike bowler? Remember it has been PSL that has showcased for selection Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah, even as all came up from the talent hunt schemes.

But this is just the first two games for Ihsanullah and we have to be careful to not read too much into him as yet.

Coaches and batsmen have just started gathering data on him, both hard and mental. If he’s still taking wickets at the end of the tournament then by all means consider him worthy of a shot at the selection. For now, though, bask in one of the great spells of the tournament’s history.

Can’t end without mentioning Mohammad Hafeez’s return to competitive cricket. It’s a gamble as Nadeem Omar could have gone for a youngster from the Pathways project that PCB introduced under Ramiz.

But he’s gone for his experience and also for his bowling and Hafeez has a great mind for pressure situations.

What was surprising therefore and maybe a bit insulting was that he came as low as No.8 even as Gladiators were losing wickets and it needed someone like Hafeez to stem the rot.

He’s also not been playing in the top leagues over the last year unlike Shoaib Malik and Imran Tahir who’re above 40 as he is.

Possibly that could have been the reason – to avoid some rustiness till he gets his groove back. But then why play him in the first game?

Let’s see how this experiment by the Gladiators pans out. It’s an important season for them considering how poorly they’ve played in the previous two PSLs. They’ve gone the safer route. Hasn’t worked for them last two PSLs. Let’s see if it works for them in this edition.

(Sohaib Alvi has been covering cricket at home and abroad for over 40 years as columnist, editor, analyst, TV expert/host. An MBA from IBA he has simultaneously had a 35-year career in the corporate sector, having worked in C-Suite positions. He now advises clients on leadership, business strategy, marketing and organizational planning.)