LAHORE: Quetta Gladiators captain Saud Shakeel said on Tuesday that he will try to impress the national selectors with a strong performance in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 11 on March 26 ahead of next year’s ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup.
South, who played his last international match for Pakistan in the blockbuster ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 against arch-rivals India, said the upcoming season is crucial for his national team’s comeback.
“This season is very important for me. The ODI World Cup (next year) is coming up and I am aiming to perform well to catch the selectors’ attention,” South said.
The 30-year-old, in his first stint as Gladiators captain, led the team to their first final since winning the title in 2019, but fell short of the coveted prize.
Citing his team’s performance in the previous edition, South promised to play the same brand of cricket and make the Gladiators champions.
“Last season’s overall performance was very good. We made it to the finals very easily,” said the left-handed batsman.
“Last time we lost the final. We are trying to play the same brand of cricket and make Quetta Gladiators champions.
But due to the addition of two new squads, the Gladiators squad has undergone significant changes as the existing six owners were allowed to retain four batsmen ahead of the historic player auction.
However, their captain South insisted that their batting strength remains intact and the team is excited to put up a strong performance in the upcoming edition of the marquee league.
“Though the team has changed a lot since the last edition, our batting strength remains the same as last year. A few days ago, the team was very excited,” South asserted.
South admits that the upcoming PSL 11 will be played behind closed doors in Karachi and Lahore in conjunction with the officially announced national resource conservation initiatives, and the players will miss fans at the stadium.
However, he stressed that if the participating teams put up a good match, the fans will fully enjoy and support the PSL from home.
“When we’re on the ground, our passion will be there, but we’ll definitely lose fans,” South said.
“But look, if we play good cricket and put up a good match, they will enjoy the action from home and we urge them to support PSL from home,” he added.
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