Islamabad, Sep 6: The captains and preliminary squads for the upcoming Champions One-Day Cup, which is scheduled to take place in Faisalabad from September 12 to 29, have been formally announced the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
The greatest cricket players in the nation will compete in a single-league structure during a competitive 50-over format.
The mentors of each of the five teams competing in the Champions Cup selected the captains for those teams:
- Wolves: Led by Mohammad Rizwan, mentored by Misbah-ul-Haq.
- Panthers: Captained by Shadab Khan, with Saqlain Mushtaq as mentor.
- Dolphins: Saud Shakeel takes the helm, guided by Sarfaraz Ahmed.
- Stallions: Mohammad Haris leads the team, mentored by Shoaib Malik.
- Lions: Shaheen Shah Afridi serves as captain, with Waqar Younis as mentor.
Here are the squads:
On September 12, Misbah-ul-Haq’s Wolves will play Saqlain Mushtaq’s Panthers in the opening game of the Champions One-Day Cup. With the exception of the Lions vs. Panthers game on September 16, which gets underway at 9:30 AM, all games are slated to begin at 3 PM.
Three playoff games spread over four days will wrap off the competition, with the championship game taking place on Sunday, September 29.
The PCB has announced provisional squads for each team, chosen from a pool of 150 players in a draft procedure.
This pool comprised 25 wildcard entry based on their expertise and past performances for Pakistan, Pakistan Shaheens, and Pakistan Under-19 teams over the previous three years, in addition to 125 top performers from the previous three domestic seasons. On September 10, the teams will be downsized to 15 players.
Fitness tests have been performed as the main selection criterion for players who are centrally contracted and have been introduced into the teams. In Faisalabad, these exams are set for September 7 and 9.
Due to personal reasons, ongoing rehabilitation, or obligations to other competitions like the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) and county cricket in the UK, a number of centrally contracted players are unable to participate in the event.
