Karachi Kings
Karachi Kings cricket team: competitions
Karachi Kings: Twenty20 Cricket Competitions
Logo Tournament Wins Years
Pakistan Super League
1
2020
Karachi Kings cricket team: Current Squad
Mohammad Nabi
All-rounder
Karachi Kings: Pakistani Cricket Team Review
Pakistani cricket fans have probably heard of the young but very promising Twenty20 cricket team – the Karachi Kings (also known by the alternative name Yeh Hai Karachi). The team was formed quite recently, in 2015. From the name, it is clear that the athletes represent their hometown – Karachi, the capital of Pakistan’s Sindh province.
You can follow the performance of the Karachi Kings in the Pakistan Super League, one of the top cricket tournaments in this country. The home arena of the team is the National Stadium, located in the city of Karachi. Its capacity is over 34 thousand spectators. This place is the largest cricket stadium in Pakistan, which is why the Karachi Kings share it with the national team and the Sindh cricket team.
We should also stay on the colorful corporate logo of the Karachi Kings. We see an image of a lion on it, which is above the team’s name and, as it growls at the rivals. The choice of this particular animal has simply explained: the lion is the “king of beasts”, a leader who will not stop at any obstacles. In addition, the team’s name speaks for itself: in front of you – “kings”. At the logo presentation ceremony, the owner of the Karachi Kings, Salman Iqbal, noted that this symbolism reflects the true spirit and firmness of the team.
The main colors of the team are blue and gold. The same range is used for the branded Karachi Kings T-shirts. They have a logo in the upper left corner. The manufacturer of special clothing for the team is the sports company AJ Sports.
Popular social networks Facebook, Twitter and Instagram have official pages of the Karachi Kings. Basically, it publishes up-to-date information about the matches in which the team participated and the personal achievements of the team’s players. In addition, the guys have a YouTube channel where they publish various kinds of video content, from short comments to life outside the game.
The Karachi Kings: history and main events
The Karachi Kings Cricket Club was established on December 3, 2015; it was formed due to the creation of the Pakistan Super League by the cricket council of this country. The franchise was sold to ARY Media Group for $ 26 million for a period of 10 years.
The Kings began their career in big-time sports in 2016 with a rather simple victory over the Lahore Qalandars. The match took place at the International Cricket Stadium in Dubai, and one of the Karachi Kings players, Mohammad Amir, scored a hat-trick. But in general, the performance of the “kings” did not work out that season, and there were no more victories.
Big shuffles in the team marked the next season. So, Imad Wasim, Shahzaib Hasan, Saifullah Bangash, Ravi Bopara, Mohammad Amir, Sohail Khan and Shoaib Malik left the team. But other players joined the “kings”, including Kieron Pollard, Mahela Jayawardena and Ryan McLaren.
However, this did not help much. The team began the 2017 season with defeats, losing to the Peshawar Zalmi and the Quetta Gladiators. Later there was a match against Lahore Qalandars, where the “kings” expected to start a winning streak, but they also suffered defeat there in the end, even if the game was tense and worthy.
The series of failures was interrupted by the game against the Islamabad United (who were the reigning champions of Pakistan at the time). In the final match of the Sharjah stage, the team continued their winning streak and this time bypassed the Peshawar Zalmi in a really tense battle. Nothing more happened for the Karachi Kings that season as the winning streak was interrupted again.
2018 and 2019 were not busy years for the team in terms of various achievements. Let’s note only a few points: the “kings” were able (apparently out of habit) to defeat the then reigning champions in 2018 – Peshawar Zalmi. Shahid Afridi joined the Karachi Kings in the same season as president and player (while leaving the Peshawar Zalmi). In the 2019 season, Vasim Akram joined them, and he became the president of the club.
But 2020 was a significant year for the team’s players: the team made every effort to reach the PSL final, and they succeeded. Under the leadership of Imad Wasim, the “kings” won the final against Lahore Qalandars and became champions for the first time in their history.
The Karachi Kings in our time: current lineup and achievements
Now the team continues to participate in major tournaments in Pakistan. The current line-up of the Karachi Kings in 2022 is as follows:
- Batsmen: Ian Cockbain, Sahibzada Farhan, Babar Azam, Sharjeel Khan, Tom Abell.
- Bowlers: Mohammad Ilyas, Mohammad Amir, Umaid Asif, Mohammad Imran, Talha Ahsan, Chris Jordan, Usman Shinwari, Mir Hamza, Romario Shepherd.
- Wicket Keeper: Rohail Nazir, Joe Clarke.
- All-Rounders: Mohammad Nabi, Imad Wasim, Faisal Akram, Aamer Yamin, Tom Lammonby, Jordan Thompson, Qasim Akram, Mohammad Taha.
Since December 2021, the head coach of the Karachi Kings has been Peter Moores.
So far, given the team’s short history, only a victory in the Pakistan Super League in 2020 is listed among their large-scale achievements. But the beginning, as they say, has been made.
