Qalandars select 16 aspirants from Sargodha

KARACHI: After discovering would-be Qalandars in Azad Kashmir and Rawalpindi, the PSL team Lahore Qalandars took its Rising Stars program to the third stop, Sargodha.

According to details provided by officials of Lahore Qalandars, around 13,500 aspiring Qalandars participated in the trials, despite hot and humid weather of Sargodha, of which 16 were picked to represent Sargodha’s side in Rising Stars tournament.

“Despite the hot & humid weather, participants turned out in full flow showcasing their energetic personalities. The turn-out was huge as 13,500 players participated in the beautiful Sargodha Cricket Stadium,” said an official of Lahore Qalandars.

During the trials to become Qalandar, the stadium was equally crowded inside and outside as massive numbers waited for their opportunity to showcase their skill in front of the panel of coaches led by LQ’s director cricket operations, Aqib Javed.

“Sargodha’s response was extremely encouraging during the two days despite the difficult weather and the same selection process was observed by the participants as thousands were cut down to hundreds on day one and shortlisted further on day two leading up to the final squad selection,” said the statement from Lahore Qalandars.

The selected players from Sargodha include Nisar Afridi (Left Hand Batsman), Malik Bilal (Right Hand Batsman), Mustafa Abbas (Right Hand Batsman), M. Asim (Right Hand Batsman), Mohsin Nadeem (Left Hand Batsman), M. Taimoor (Right Hand Batsman), Ateeq Ur Rehman (Right Hand Batsman), Khurram (Right Arm Fast Bowler), Mamooon-ur-Riaz (Right Arm Fast Bowler), Zakir Ullah (Right Arm Fast Bowler), M. Shahzair (Right Arm Fast Bowler), Rana Kashif (Left Arm Spin Bowler), Raja Farhan (Right Arm Spin Bowler), S. Azan (Right Arm Spin Bowler), Rana Shahzaib (Wicket Keeper), Ameer Hamza (Right Arm Fast Bowler).

The next stop for Qalandars would be the city of Layyah on September 10 and 11.