Kingdom Valley National T20 Cup 2022-23 kicks off on Tuesday in Pakistan

Kingdom Valley National T20 Cup 2022-23 kicks off on Tuesday in Pakistan: The best domestic white-ball cricketers of Pakistan would be seen in action as the Kingdom Valley National T20 Cup 2022-23 starts at Pindi Stadium, Rawalpindi on the 30th of August 2022.

The 33-match series was a curtain raiser for the 2022-23 men’s domestic cricket season. This tournament would be followed by Quaid-e-Azam Trophy (first-class) and Pakistan Cup (one day).

The National T20 Cup 2022-23 would be played in two stadiums. Pindi Stadium, Rawalpindi would be hosting the first 16 matches till September 7, 2022. The action will then shift to Multan Cricket Stadium, where the remaining matches will be played from September 10 to 19.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, under the captaincy of Khalid Usman, would enter the tournament with the mission of securing a hat-trick of titles. His team won the 2020-21 and 2021-22 editions.

They have won 15 matches out of their last 24 matches. The team begins its campaign on the 31st of August. They will be facing Central Punjab. Khalid Usman said, “There is a little pressure when you are defending the title, but, we have a good unit that has all the potential to do the job.”

“The atmosphere in the team is great. My message to my boys is to play fearless, positive cricket and give their 110 percent.” Balochistan will enter the tournament with confidence. They ended the previous season with success by winning the Pakistan Cup.

Balochistan would have a face-off with Central Punjab on the opening day of the tournament under the captaincy of Yasir Shah. Yasir Shah said, “We have a good T20 side and our players have been doing well in different leagues recently.” Central Punjab was defeated by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s team in Lahore last season. The credit for this defeat goes to Iftikhar Ahmed’s whirlwind 19-ball 45 not out, in the final.

All-rounder Faheem Ashraf will be leading them this season. Faheem said, “It is a dream to lead or represent Punjab or Central Punjab. To thrive in T20 competitions, it is important to come together as a unit and develop good combinations from the onset, so we are looking to do that.”

Northern emerged as champions of the first National T20 played. They defeated Balochistan in the final. Under the captaincy of Umar Amin, their aim is to start well at their home, Rawalpindi. They aim to go the distance when the tournament shifts to Multan.

Umar Amin said, “Our team has a good combination of youth and experience. We made some mistakes at crunch moments in the last two editions but I hope, will not repeat them.”

Southern Punjab made a last-minute change of guard after Hasan Ali was included in the national side for the ongoing ACC T20 Asia Cup. All-rounder Salman Ali Agha will be handling the reins in the absence of the star pacer. Southern Punjab had a memorable 2020-21 campaign in which they failed to win the title falling 10 runs short.

Zain Abbas (Southern Punjab vice-captain) said, “We have prepared well for it and are coming into this tournament with a passion to do well as we have not won a major tournament for Southern Punjab yet.”

“We want to win this tournament.” Sindh, captained by Saud Shakeel, would face Southern Punjab in the first match of the National T20 Cup 2022-23 on Tuesday. Saud Shakeel said, “We have good spinners, hard-hitting openers, Sharjeel being one of them, and sloggers in the middle-order. Hopefully, we will do well in this tournament.”

Sindh’s second XI’s Rumman Raees has been replaced by Sohail Khan following an injury to the former. Asif Ali joins the second XI team.

The domestic cricket action 2022-23 will be starting at the Pindi Stadium. The first phase of the National T20 Cup will begin on the 30th of August 2022.

Sindh will face Southern Punjab in the opening match while the day’s second match will witness Balochistan playing against Central Punjab. Due to the ongoing Asia Cup, all the matches in the first phase will be played under natural light. The first match will begin at 9.30 am. The second phase of the matches will start at 2 pm daily. From September 12 onward the first match will be starting at 3 pm while the second at 7.30 pm.

Balochistan captain Yasir Shah said: “We are looking forward to carrying the momentum from the Pakistan Cup. Our youngsters –Haseebullah and Abdul Wahid Bangalzai — were terrific in that tournament and I am sure they will continue their form. We have a good T20 side and our players have been doing well in different leagues recently.”

Kingdom Valley National T20 Cup 2022-23 Schedule