Daily Times

LAHORE: The first edition of the Hamza Shahbaz Gold Cup One-day Cricket Tournament will roll into action here from Wednesday (today) at three venues of the city. “It is going to be a beneficial activity to promote club cricket and to identify new talent,” said Lahore Region Cricket Association (LRCA) president Khawaja Nadeem Ahmad on Tuesday. He said in all hundred top players, including Test, international and first class cricketers would be displaying their talent and potential in the event. “These players have been drawn in six teams namely Eagles, Lions, Ravi, Shalimar, Falcons and Cheetas, Quality and competitive cricket will be witnessed during the 15-day competition being held under the aegis of the LRCA”.

The 50-over matches will be supervised by an elite panel of umpires. A number of committees have been formed to ensure the smooth conduct of the event. The LRCA chief will inaugurate the event while Hamza Shahbaz, MNA, will be the chief guest at the final on May 10. The matches will be played at LCCA, Ittefaq and Cricket Centre grounds. To a question, the LRCA chief said the participating teams were equally balanced and efforts had been made to gel experience with youth to ensure good cricket in the matches. The winning team will get a cash prize of Rs 100,000 while the runners-up will receive Rs 50,000.