PSL 2023: 'Lahore Qalandars' bowling attack among the best'

KARACHI: South Africa-born Namibian cricketer David Wiese has credited Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchise Lahore Qalandars for efforts to develop cricketing talent.

Talking to journalists on the sidelines of the Lahore Qalandars practice session, Wiese said that his side’s bowling attack is one the best in the league and he is looking forward to a good season.

“I am excited to be back, this is my fifth year now with Qalandars. So, it's a place that I've come in, I've enjoyed being over here playing, enjoyed my time with the team, coming back as defending champions now, it's a bit different for us.

“We the team that everybody is chasing, now we've got a target on our back. So hopefully, we can put in a couple more good performances and put ourselves in a good position coming into the final part of the tournament,” said the all-rounder who has played for both, South Africa and Namibia.

Talking about Qalandars’ bowing attack, the all-rounder said that bowling is Qalandars’ strength and it is one of the strongest attacks in the world.

“One of our strengths over the years is our bowling attack, specifically, the death bowling. We saw the other night again, how Shaheen [Shah Afridi] and Zaman [Khan] executed their skills in the death overs to win us that game. So, we have got one of the strongest bowling attacks, then with Rashid Khan coming in just strengthens that a lot. So, I think we've got all our bases covered this season,” he said.

Wiese played one game for Karachi Kings in 2017 before moving to Lahore Qalandars in 2018 and since then he has not moved to any other franchise.

Before PSL, he had played one IPL and one CPL season to his credit and he feels that Qalandars provided him with the opportunity at a time when he wasn’t playing too many leagues.

After his 2018 stint with Qalandars, Weise got contracts in BPL, Mzansi Super League and SLPL.

“Lahore has been the team that gave me the opportunity when I wasn't playing in a lot of the leagues. they backed me, and, you know, I've fortunately done well for them. I've enjoyed success with, and it's a team that has backed me and has always had belief in me. I'm appreciative of that,” he said.

“Qalandars have always been big on talent development. And, we see that with the PDP programs that they have, guys coming through the talent development, like Haris Rauf, he's one that shows that there's so much talent out there and Qalandars have been able to unearth this talent,” said the Namibian cricketer.

Qalandars will next play Karachi Kings in Karachi on February 19 and Wiese said that it will be an exciting contest between two big cities.

“We didn’t have much success against them initially but we have over the last couple of years done well against them,” he said.

He also praised Qalandars' young captain Shaheen and said that he has got a good cricketing mind on him.

“Tactically he backs himself, he backs his instinct, and most of the time he gets a glance. I think everybody was surprised at how good a captain he actually was last season. The other thing that stands out for me about Shaheen is that he's not afraid to go ask people for advice. He's not afraid to go to other people and see what their opinions are. And then he takes on their opinions and then makes the decision for himself., that's the mark of a good captain and a good leader,” he concluded.