President Asif Ali Zardari has highlighted the importance of improving cricket infrastructure and training facilities in Sindh to nurture and promote the talent in the province. He said, “It is vital to explore the possibility of joint ventures in the Cricket sector to develop state-of-the-art stadiums, besides providing modern coaching and mentoring opportunities to youth of Sindh.” The President was talking to a delegation of Sindh Premier League (SPL), led by Chairman SPL Malik Aslam which called on him at Aiwan-e-Sadr on Wednesday. Secretary Sports and Youth Affairs Department of Sindh, Mr Jalaluddin Mahar, Vice Chairman SPL, Major General (r) Zahid Mehmood, President SPL, Mr Arif Malik, CEO SPL, Chaudhary Shahzad Akhtar, and senior government officials attended the meeting. Asif Ali Zardari appreciated the Sindh Premier League (SPL) for providing a great platform to showcase Sindh’s cricket talent. He urged the need to devise a comprehensive long-term roadmap to promote Cricket in the province.

“Promoting sports and Cricket leagues in Pakistan will not only enhance sports tourism but will also boost economic activities,” he remarked. The delegation briefed the President about the role of SPL in uncovering and promoting Sindh’s cricketing talent and improving Cricket infrastructure. It also highlighted the achievements of SPL’s inaugural season and shared future plans for establishing a high-performance centre in Karachi aimed at training young talent, particularly from rural and underrepresented areas of Sindh. The delegation also apprised the President about the problems being faced by the League. President Zardari assured the delegation of his support to encourage and promote Cricket in Sindh, stating that he would ask the Sindh Government and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to extend all necessary assistance to help improve Cricketing infrastructure in Sindh as well as provide mentoring to make SPL a success. Later, the SPL delegation also presented an SPL shirt to the President.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan