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1st edition of the Kashmir Premier League From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 2021 Kashmir Premier League (also known as 2021 KPL or, for sponsorship reasons, SRG KPL 2021), was the inaugural season of the Kashmir Premier League which was established by the Pakistan Cricket Board. The tournament featured six teams and was held from 6 August 2021 to 17 August 2021 in Muzaffarabad, Azad Kashmir. The opening ceremony and first match of the tournament were held at the Muzaffarabad Stadium on 6 August 2021.[1]
| |
| Dates | 6 August 2021 – 17 August 2021 |
|---|---|
| Administrator(s) | Pakistan Cricket Board |
| Cricket format | Twenty20 |
| Tournament format(s) | Single round-robin and playoffs |
| Host(s) | Azad Kashmir |
| Champions | Rawalakot Hawks (1st title) |
| Runners-up | Muzaffarabad Tigers |
| Participants | 6 |
| Matches | 19 |
| Player of the series | Hussain Talat (227 runs and 4 wickets) |
| Most runs | Sharjeel Khan (296) |
| Most wickets | Salman Irshad (16) |
| Official website | kpl20 |
The final was held on 17 August and saw Rawalakot Hawks defeating Muzaffarabad Tigers by 8 runs to win the first title.[2] Asif Afridi of Rawalakot Hawks was awarded the man of the match award for his bowling figures of 3/21.[3]
| Team | Owner | City | Captain | Coach |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bagh Stallions | Hameed Khan & Tauqir Sultan Awan | Bagh | Shan Masood | Abdul Rehman |
| Kotli Lions | Faisal Nadeem, Khalid Zia and Nasir Yousuf | Kotli | Kamran Akmal | Abdul Razzaq |
| Mirpur Royals | Adil Waheed & Suleman Raza[4][5] | Mirpur | Shoaib Malik | Inzamam-ul-Haq |
| Muzaffarabad Tigers | Arshad Khan Tanoli[6] | Muzaffarabad | Mohammad Hafeez | Mohtashim Rasheed |
| Overseas Warriors | Muhammad Zakir Ali | Kashmiri diaspora | Imad Wasim | Mushtaq Ahmed |
| Rawalakot Hawks | Jan Wali Shaheen | Rawalakot | Shahid Afridi | Arshad Khan |
The league was promoted on social media by the hashtag #KheloAazadiSe.[8] The brand ambassador of the 2021 KPL was Shahid Afridi and the official singer was Rahat Fateh Ali Khan.[9]
The official anthem of the KPL, “The Aazadi Anthem” was released on 16 February 2021 and it was sung by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan.[10]
The opening ceremony took place on the 6th of August 2021.[1]
The whole tournament took place in Muzaffarabad, Azad Kashmir.[11] Around 2,500 spectators were allowed to watch the match in stadium due to COVID-19.[12]
| Muzaffarabad | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Muzaffarabad Cricket Stadium | |||
| Capacity: 10,000 | |||
 | |||
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rawalakot Hawks (C) | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0.228 |
| 2 | Muzaffarabad Tigers (R) | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0.530 |
| 3 | Mirpur Royals (3rd) | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 | −0.323 |
| 4 | Overseas Warriors (4th) | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 4 | −0.032 |
| 5 | Bagh Stallions | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 4 | −0.201 |
| 6 | Kotli Lions | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | −0.107 |
Notes:
Against Team |
Bagh Stallions | Kotli Lions | Mirpur Royals | Muzaffarabad Tigers | Overseas Warriors | Rawalakot Hawks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bagh Stallions | Won by 5 wickets | Won by 15 runs | Lost by 4 wickets | Lost by 5 wickets | Lost by 5 wickets | |
| Kotli Lions | Lost in Super Over | Lost by 5 wickets | Won by 8 wickets | Match Abandoned | ||
| Mirpur Royals | Won by 5 wickets | Won by 5 wickets | Lost by 43 runs | |||
| Muzaffarabad Tigers | Won by 7 wickets | Lost by 1 run | ||||
| Overseas Warriors | Won by 7 wickets | |||||
| Rawalakot Hawks |
| Win | Loss | No result |
The schedule for the tournament was announced on 2 August 2021.[13] The matches from 12 August onwards were rescheduled due to the Pakistan vs West Indies test series as the timings coincided with each other.[14]
Rawalakot Hawks 194/6 (20 overs) |
v |
Mirpur Royals 151/8 (20 overs) |
Kotli Lions 169 (20 overs) |
v |
Bagh Stallions 172/5 (19.4 overs) |
Overseas Warriors 153/8 (20 overs) |
v |
Muzaffarabad Tigers 156/3 (17.2 overs) |
Bagh Stallions 211/6 (20 overs) |
v |
Mirpur Royals 196/8 (20 overs) |
Overseas Warriors 145/6 (20 overs) |
v |
Mirpur Royals 146/5 (18.1 overs) |
Rawalakot Hawks 175/7 (20 overs) |
v |
Muzaffarabad Tigers 174/8 (20 overs) |
Kotli Lions 195/4 (20 overs) |
v |
Muzaffarabad Tigers 196/5 (18.3 overs) |
Bagh Stallions 186/7 (20 overs) |
v |
Overseas Warriors 190/5 (19.2 overs) |
Bagh Stallions 156/9 (20 overs) |
v |
Rawalakot Hawks 157/5 (18.2 overs) |
Mirpur Royals 211/6 (20 overs) |
v |
Kotli Lions 211/8 (20 overs) |
Bagh Stallions 213/4 (20 overs) |
v |
Muzaffarabad Tigers 214/6 (18.4 overs) |
Sohaib Maqsood 59 (40) Aamir Sohail 2/37 (4 overs) |
Rawalakot Hawks 145/9 (20 overs) |
v |
Overseas Warriors 133/3 (13.1 overs) |
Overseas Warriors 211/6 (20 overs) |
v |
Kotli Lions 215/2 (19 overs) |
Muzaffarabad Tigers 227/6 (20 overs) |
v |
Mirpur Royals 231/5 (19.4 overs) |
| Semifinals | Preliminary final | Final | |||||||||||
| 14 August — Muzaffarabad | 17 August — Muzaffarabad | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Muzaffarabad Tigers | 164/8 (20 overs) | 1 | Rawalakot Hawks | 169/7 (20 overs) | ||||||||
| 1 | Rawalakot Hawks | 157 (19.4 overs) | 16 August — Muzaffarabad | 2 | Muzaffarabad Tigers | 162/9 (20 overs) | |||||||
| 3 | Mirpur Royals | 236/4 (20 overs) | |||||||||||
| 15 August — Muzaffarabad | 1 | Rawalakot Hawks | 237/6 (19.4 overs) | ||||||||||
| 4 | Overseas Warriors | 160/9 (20 overs) | |||||||||||
| 3 | Mirpur Royals | 162/6 (18.4 overs) | |||||||||||
Muzaffarabad Tigers 164/8 (20 overs) |
v |
Rawalakot Hawks 157 (19.4 overs) |
Overseas Warriors 160/9 (20 overs) |
v |
Mirpur Royals 162/6 (18.4 overs) |
Mirpur Royals 236/4 (20 overs) |
v |
Rawalakot Hawks 237/6 (19.4 overs) |
Rawalakot Hawks 169/7 (20 overs) |
v |
Muzaffarabad Tigers 162/9 (20 overs) |
| Player | Team | Matches | Runs | High score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sharjeel Khan | Mirpur Royals | 6 | 296 | 141 |
| Zeeshan Ashraf | Muzaffarabad Tigers | 7 | 284 | 107 not out |
| Shan Masood | Bagh Stallions | 5 | 254 | 78 |
| Kashif Ali | Rawalakot Hawks | 7 | 242 | 114 not out |
| Shoaib Malik | Mirpur Royals | 7 | 240 | 77 |
| Player | Team | Matches | Wickets | Best bowling |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salman Irshad | Mirpur Royals | 7 | 16 | 3/25 |
| Asif Afridi | Rawalakot Hawks | 7 | 12 | 3/21 |
| Amad Butt | Mirpur Royals | 7 | 11 | 3/20 |
| Zaman Khan | Rawalakot Hawks | 6 | 10 | 3/18 |
| Umaid Asif | Bagh Stallions | 5 | 9 | 3/20 |
| Name | Team | Award |
|---|---|---|
| Hussain Talat | Rawalakot Hawks | Player of the Tournament |
| Zeeshan Ashraf | Muzaffarabad Tigers | Best Batsman of the tournament |
| Asif Afridi | Rawalakot Hawks | Best Bowler of the tournament |
| Mohammad Wasim | Muzaffarabad Tigers | Best Fielder of the tournament |
| Bismillah Khan | Rawalakot Hawks | Best Wicket-keeper of the tournament |
| Salman Irshad | Mirpur Royals | Best Kashmiri of the tournament |
On 31 July 2021, it was reported that foreign cricketers were requested by the Indian cricket board (BCCI) against taking part in the inaugural Kashmir Premier League (KPL) cricket tournament.[18][19] Former Pakistani wicket keeper Rashid Latif tweeted that BCCI is warning other cricket boards that if their former players took part in Kashmir Premier League, they won't be allowed entry in India or allowed to work in Indian cricket at any level or in any capacity. Former South African cricketer Herschelle Gibbs, who played for the Overseas Warriors, also accused BCCI of pressuring him to not play in the KPL.[20] The Pakistan cricket board (PCB) expressed displeasure at the reports that BCCI is trying to prevent players from joining the tournament and said that it would raise the issue with the relevant ICC forum.[21][22] Responding to Gibbs and the PCB, the BCCI said that they are well within their rights to take decisions with respect to the cricketing ecosystem in India.[23][24]
On 1 August 2021, former England spinner Monty Panesar pulled out of the tournament. He took to Twitter to reveal the news and said that, "I have decided not to participate in the KPL because of the political tensions between India and Pakistan over Kashmir issues. I don't want to be in the middle of this, it would make me feel uncomfortable."[25][26] Panesar further said in an interview that "BCCI had 'advised' him that if he played in the event, the 'consequences' of his decision could include not being granted a visa to India in the future and not being allowed to work in the country."[27][28]
On 2 August 2021, the BCCI urged ICC not to recognise the Kashmir Premier League due to the disputed nature of Kashmir region between India and Pakistan.[29] In response, the ICC clarified that the tournament doesn't come under their jurisdiction as it is not an international tournament.[30] The 2021 KPL received 15 million views within the first 5 matches and broke the record for Pakistan's most viewed live sports event launch on digital media. The President of the KPL, Arif Malik, said that the BCCI's efforts to stop the league only popularised it instead.[31][32]
The KPL did not pay players for any player awards (e.g., man of the match) and end of the season awards. They later cleared all player related dues in June 2022.[33][34]
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