Pakistan Junior League (PJL) Schedule,Mentors,Players All Details
Pakistan Junior League Begins October 6
The first edition of the Pakistan Junior League (PJL) begins on Thursday, October 6. The tournament, a T20 league for Under-19 cricketers from around the world, was conceived by PCB Chairman Ramiz Raja to prepare the young players for the competitive scene. It will be played in a single-league format, with six sides in action, with the top four going into a play-off, and a final, on 21 October. In total, there will be 19 matches over 16 days, featuring the best local talent as well as foreign players.
What does the Pakistan Junior League hope to achieve?
“A young apprentice can be molded into a talent with the right environment, which we aim to create in this format,” Raja said at the launch of the tournament. The aim of the league is not only to identify talent but also to nurture them and bridge the gap between the under-19 level and the top level of cricket.
All this, one might say, is what the highest levels of domestic cricket do. In most parts of the world there is a structured pathway for age group players, from under-15 to under-19. In Pakistan, historically, age-group players have played longer formats of the game – one-day as well as two- and three-day matches. It is then reduced and, if all goes well, a chance to play in the Under-19 ODI World Cup, after which the players enter the first-class circuit.
Pakistani cricketers have traditionally not been exposed to the T20 format during their development phase. But since the launch of the PSL in 2016, where every franchise is required to field at least one emerging player in every game, a few new faces have emerged. PCB is hoping that PJL will follow suit.
Also Read :ICC Cricket T20 World Cup 2022 Schedule, Team, Venue,Squad
Wasn’t there something about it being a franchise-based league Pakistan Junior League?
Yes, PCB envisioned it anticipating huge commercial interest. In fact, 24 companies had approached for expressions of interest after the initial tender by the PCB. But it didn’t help much, and the PCB decided to take full ownership of the tournament.
To avoid clashing with PSL’s ecosystem, PJL has chosen other cities to attach teams. The names of 12 cities were released for bidding, of which six were finalized as Bahawalpur (Royals), Gujranwala (Giants), Gwadar (Sharks), Hyderabad (Hunters), Mardan (Warriors) and Rawalpindi (Riders). has gone .
PCB Chairman Ramiz Raja arrived to address a press conference at the National Cricket Academy, Lahore on September 13, 2021.
Ramiz Raja: “A young apprentice can be molded into a genius with the right environment, which is what we want to create in this format.”
But the senior Pakistani team is also playing – will PJL catch any eye?
It’s a concern, isn’t it? Indeed, scheduling has been a challenge, as the tournament coincides with a tri-series T20I series with the Pakistan senior team touring New Zealand. The first round of the Men’s T20 World Cup will begin in Australia soon after. The PJL was originally scheduled to run from 1 to 15 October, but this would have caused a clash between Pakistan and England in the latter part of the T20I series.
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What do the teams look like in terms of personnel?
A total of 90 players have been selected, including 24 from 11 other countries. The list consists of under-19 players, including four full members Afghanistan, England, South Africa and West Indies. Each team must have one associate member player, so Charlie Tear and Gabriel Gilman Findlay from Scotland, Matthew Tromp from USA, Kushal Mala from Nepal, Ali Naseer from UAE, Burhan Niaz from Belgium, Nathan Edwards and Isai Thorne from West Indies, Archie Lenham, George Thomas, Tom Aspinwall, Danial Ibrahim and Joseph Eckland from England, and Hassan Issakhil from Afghanistan.
Each squad consists of 15 players including four from overseas. The head coaches of the teams selected by the PCB are Gordon Parsons (Bahawalpur), Toby Radford (Rawalpindi), Ijaz Ahmed (Gujranwala), Mushtaq Ahmed (Gwadar), Abdul Razzaq (Hyderabad), and Abdul Rehman (Mardan). .
Each side can pick a maximum of three and a minimum of two overseas players in their XIs.
Composite: Imran Tahir, Darren Sammy, Shoaib Malik, Colin Munro, Viv Richards, Shahid Afridi
The PCB has lined up an impressive cast of mentors, one for each side.
Are the players getting paid?
They are what sets it apart from the regular under-19 circuit. Each team has 15 players in three different categories: Elite (four players), Premier (five) and X Factor (six). The salary slabs are US$16,000 for Elite, US$12,000 for Premier, and US$6000 for X-Factor.
All expenses including player salaries will be borne by PCB. Its Board of Governors approved a PKR 15 billion (approximately US$66.33 million) budget for the 2022–23 season, of which 78% is earmarked for cricket activities.
