Peshawar Zalmi Announces Fata Super League

[Saifullah Sani]

Peshawar Zalmi on Wednesday announced Fata Super League which will be hosted in four stadiums of Fata, said a press release from the Pakistan Super League (PSL) champions.

The league is scheduled to be run from April 3 to April 13.

Javed Afridi, owner of the franchise, said the league will give an excellent opportunity to talented cricketers from the area.

https://twitter.com/x/status/847090373059121153

He added that the purpose of the league will be to promote the positive and peaceful image of Fata.

“Success of this T20 league will bring more normality to the area,” said the franchise owner.

The team will have participation from 24 teams and 67 matches will be played during the 11-day league, added the statement from Zalmi.

Winning team will be awarded Rs0.6 million while the runner-ups will get Rs0.3 million.

The statement added that “top cricketers including Salman Butt, Umar Amin, Mohammad Rizwan and others will add value to the event”.

“The league will be fully supported by the Pakistan Army and the politicians,” said Zalmi’s statement.

https://www.dawn.com/news/1323597

 

[WaLeEdK2]

Welcoming news. Not only will it bring normalcy and enjoyment to the people but it will also help see any local talent that could contribute to the national team.

 

[AZADPAKISTAN2009]

Reasonable push for regional talent hunt better approach then 1-2 day trial. Put players in real life playing situation and test out players in real local league

 

[cocomo]

Javed Afridi is a brilliant man and an asset to Pakistan.

 

[Areesh]

Good initiative by PZ

 

[RealNapster]

Good initiative by PZ

Yes. Agree, Good Initiative.

but he is an Afghan lover. remember that thread you created ? He kissed the God damn Afghanistan flag Yar.

Mujhy to is me b koi sajish lagti hay iski. Fata ka kehky afghani player's ko khilwaye ga.


P.s : Sorry if i went too far. just wanted to show "ourselves" our-self.

 

[Areesh]

Yes. Agree, Good Initiative.

but he is an Afghan lover. remember that thread you created ? He kissed the God damn Afghanistan flag Yar.

Mujhy to is me b koi sajish lagti hay iski. Fata ka kehky afghani player's ko khilwaye ga.


P.s : Sorry if i went too far. just wanted to show "ourselves" our-self.

I still hate him for that. But since this initiative is for FATA which is part of Pakistan I appreciate it.

 

[RealNapster]

I still hate him for that. But since this initiative is for FATA which is part of Pakistan I appreciate it.

 

[BetterPakistan]

Good news.

 

[Arsalan]

Excellent initiative!

 

[Samiullah Khan Mohmand]

Support #MohmandZalmi in #FSL2017 #FATASuperLeague
It is a step towards peaceful and mainstream #FATA but mainstream media ignore the event.We are selling FATA insurgency not it's peace
View media item 17395

 

[HAIDER]

For some reason Shahid Afridi walk away and disagree....

 

[Kabira]

11-day extravaganza in FATA
By Editorial
Published: April 4, 2017
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It is rare for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) to host a national sporting event. Rarer still is it for the tribal regions to stage the first-ever super league T20 cricket matches. On Monday, the Fata super league opened amid much fanfare in the Jamrud sports complex of Khyber Agency.

Organisers say the purpose of the event is to promote a positive and peaceful image of Fata whose people have been stigmatised by years of insurgency and militancy. The young people of the region have been left deeply scarred by the resulting violence and bloodshed. For so long large segments of the Fata population remained confined to their homes instead of participating in healthy sports activities. Their energies in all that time were misspent in inactivity. But one hopes their talents will now be tapped more than ever.

Already people in the tribal region have begun to show their sporting prowess. Some of them have earned wide recognition as well in recent years. Their cricketers, for instance, have done enormously well against the teams of other, more mainstream regions. If there is anything lacking, it is exposure. With opportunities brimming, they could at last turn their backs on the wave of militancy that they experienced and endured in the not too distant past. One hopes the Fata Super League will bring a semblance of normality and peace to the area. It is that kind of image that we should all try to portray to the rest of the world.

Several top cricketers such as Salman Butt, Umar Amin and Muhammad Rizwan have already become a part of the 24-team league. The focus of the 11-day league will be encouraging and harnessing local talent: each team will field nine players from Fata while the other two players will be chosen from outside the tribal region.

Another encouraging feature about the league is that the funds collected for the event as well as the prize money have been exclusively raised by one of the region’s parliamentarians. In the days to come, one hopes more sponsors outside Fata would join in the effort.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 4th, 2017.
https://tribune.com.pk/story/1373454/11-day-extravaganza-fata/