Omar hopes AB’s decision encourages Watson to visit Pakistan

KARACHI: The Pakistan Super League has emerged as one of the top brands in the country within three editions since its inception. Several elements have contributed towards the rise of PSL as a household name in the country.

Such factors, like Qalandars' selflessness to Sammy's Pashto-speaking skills and from United's calmness to Kings' entertainment, have made everyone glued to PSL. And one such element was the involvement of West Indian great Sir Vivian Richards, who is the mentor of the Quetta Gladiators team.

Sir Viv, who himself was a cricketing gladiator of his time, has been a regular feature in the Quetta dugout and owner Nadeem Omar feels that the presence of the West Indian great gives his team supreme energy.

"Sir Viv Richards is not there for Gladiators only. I believe that he has contributed his part in lifting the Pakistan Super League as a brand as well," said Omar while talking to this correspondent.

"He's not just a mentor. He is so involved that he feels like more than a mentor, he takes ownership of every moment, he’s like an owner of the team," Omar added while explaining what it means to have someone like him in the dugout.

Omar further said that Viv is a person who is sincere to cricket, and that is why he is available for all players, even from other franchises too.

And there's no doubt that Viv has also played an important part in making Quetta play two finals in the three previous PSL editions.

But the unavailability of its top foreign signing, especially when it played the final against Zalmi in the 2017 edition, was a big letdown for Quetta Gladiators.

"When your main top players are not here then it is very difficult for you to win the final. New arrivals were not gelled as they had arrived only hours before the final. This was a big letdown for us. We had a golden chance to win two titles, we could have [won] if we had our full strength available," he said.

Omar, though, hopes that the news of AB de Villiers coming to Pakistan will encourage Shane Watson to opt for visiting Pakistan as well.

However, Quetta is done with its over-reliance on foreign players.

"When Shane would see that the likes of AB and other top players are also visiting Pakistan then it would be easy to convince him to make a decision on visiting Pakistan with a positive nod," the Gladiators owner said.

"Rest all foreign players are coming, but this time no over-reliance on foreigners. Our bench strength is very strong and I am hopeful that locals will play an important role," Omar said.

Among the local strength of Gladiators, there are Umar Akmal and Ahmed Shahzad. Many critics say that these two, due to their previous disciplinary issues, may not go well.

But Nadeem Omar is confident that both the players have a point to prove now and that they will deliver for sure.

"I believe that one always deserves a second chance to prove his worth. This is their chance…can be the last one but I am sure that they also realise that they are at a crossroads and they must do well in the tournament," said Omar with his eyes set on a maiden PSL title.

Talking about the Gladiators journey in the league so far, the Karachi-based entrepreneur said that he was satisfied with his team's performance and glad that being a franchise owner he contributed his part in bringing cricket back to Pakistan.

He said that whatever losses the franchise suffered in the first three seasons, he considered it a contribution towards a greater cause.

But he was delighted to see eight matches being played in Pakistan this season.

"I am very happy to see PSL matches coming to Pakistan," he said.

"The real fun of PSL will be felt when all the matches are being played in Pakistan. I hope that with Imran Khan in power, the government would facilitate all efforts to bring PSL completely to Pakistan," he said.

Nadeem Omar highlighted that the growth of PSL could be judged from the fact that when people came to invest in teams the first time, no one was sure if the investment was secure and now everyone wants to invest in PSL.

"It is one of the most competitive leagues in the world and second top league, which is good for Pakistan," he said

"It has contributed a lot towards Pakistan Cricket and the results can be seen with the team's performance as well. Our players are learning work ethics and on-field attitude when they share the dressing room with top professionals of the game," he said.

He also informed that the franchise was working on grassroots talent in Quetta and an inter-school tournament was being organised there regularly.

"Unfortunately, Balochistan was neglected for a long time. We need time to overcome the backlog of seven decades. We are finding players and making them play cricket so that they can enhance their skills before being picked by any team," he said.