Pakistan Test captain Babar Azam and One-day International skipper Shaheen Shah Afridi will headline the opening round of the 69th edition of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, which gets under way across Islamabad, Abbottabad and Rawalpindi on Tuesday.
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Babar will turn out for Lahore Whites, who face Shaheen-led Fata at the Diamond Cricket Ground in Islamabad, in what promises to be one of the early highlights of the premier first-class competition.
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Several other established Pakistan players will also feature in the tournament, with Saud Shakeel captaining defending champions Karachi Blues, Mohammad Rizwan leading Peshawar Blues and Imam-ul-Haq taking charge of Multan.
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Abdullah Shafique will captain Sialkot Blues, while Mohammad Nawaz has been named skipper of Rawalpindi in the Silver tier.
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The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Monday announced the schedule and team rosters for the Gold and Silver competitions, which will run simultaneously and feature 20 regional sides.
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Eight teams will compete in the Gold tier, with Karachi Blues, Faisalabad, Fata, Lahore Whites, Islamabad, Peshawar Blues, Multan and Sialkot Blues vying for the title.
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The competition will run from Nov 3 to Dec 12, with the five-day final scheduled for Dec 15-19.
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The winners will be crowned champions of the 69th edition of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, while the 12-team Silver competition will provide a pathway to the top tier for next season.
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The Silver teams have been divided into two groups of six.
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Lahore Blues, Rawalpindi, Larkana, Quetta, Bahawalpur and Peshawar Whites form Group ‘A’, while Group ‘B’ comprises Karachi Whites, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Hyderabad, Dera Murad Jamali, Abbottabad and Sialkot Whites.
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Group ‘A’ matches will be staged at the KCCA Stadium, SBP and UBL Sports Complexes in Karachi, while Group ‘B’ fixtures will be held at the Multan Cricket Stadium, Sports Complex in Rahim Yar Khan and Dring Stadium in Bahawalpur.
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The Silver group matches will take place from Nov 3-30, with the final between the two group winners scheduled for Dec 3-7.
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The winners will earn promotion to the Gold tier for the following season.
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A total of 60 first-class matches will be played across the two competitions, with 29 fixtures in Gold and 31 in Silver.
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Both tiers will carry first-class status.
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The tournament will also mark the first time that Peshawar and Sialkot regions will field two teams each in a first-class competition.
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In the Gold tier, Lahore Whites’ squad includes Babar, all-rounder Aamir Jamal, Tayyab Tahir and Noman Ali, while Fata will be led by Shaheen and also feature Khushdil Shah and Mohammad Wasim Khan.
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Karachi Blues, meanwhile, have retained a strong line-up under Saud, with Saim Ayub and Omair Bin Yousuf among the players in their squad.
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Shan Masood, Abrar Ahmed and Mir Hamza are included in the team’s reserves and national-duty pool.
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Peshawar Blues will be captained by wicket-keeper batter Rizwan, with Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Haris and Iftikhar Ahmed also named in the squad.
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In the Silver competition, Abbottabad have included Fakhar Zaman and Kamran Ghulam, while Rawalpindi’s squad features Shadab Khan, Haider Ali, Mohammad Nawaz and Jahandad Khan.
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The PCB said teams would operate with revolving rosters throughout the tournament, with 15 travelling members and the option to draw on reserve players and those in the national-duty pool when available.
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