Live Score
Cricket Teams
Cricket Players
Fans slam officials for pushing ahead with Pakistan Super League despite coronavirus fears
The T20 league begins from Thursday with the matches set to take place inside National Stadium in Karachi, which can hold up to 30,000 spectators.
At a time when sporting events across the world including the Indian Premier League, La Liga, NBA and F1 are getting affected by the coronavirus pandemic, the Pakistan cricket authorities brushed off the fears, pushing ahead with Pakistan Super League. The T20 league begins from Thursday with the matches set to take place inside National Stadium in Karachi, which can hold up to 30,000 spectators. The fans have expressed concerns over the authorities continuing to host games despite a rise in coronavirus cases across the world.
Also read: Fans express displeasure after another Dharamsala clash gets washed out
“Still trying to understand why PSL hasn’t been canceled during a GLOBAL PANDEMIC,” novelist Fatima Bhutto tweeted. “Well developed countries are in lockdown, world’s best sports events are cancelled but in Pakistan flight operations are still going on, PSL is still not banned, schools to be open from 16th! Where we’re headed?,” another Twitter used named Asim Siddiq added.
Karachi National Stadium is expected to host five T20 league games. The officials, in a statement, encouraged fans to attend the matches, and said that all necessary safety measures are being taken place. “We have ensured all kinds of safety measures at the PSL matches, so the people can enjoy cricket,” said Murtaza Wahab, the provincial government spokesman. “Spectators would be scanned and they would be able to wash and sanitise their hands before entering into the stadium.”
Also read: Rain washes out first ODI in Dharamsala
Pakistan has recorded just 20 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus -- including several in Karachi -- but no deaths, according to Mumtaz Ali Khan from the National Institute of Health. However, there are fears that officials have yet to test large swathes of the population in earnest due to a lack of resources and decades of underinvestment in the country’s health sector.
(With AFP inputs)
