Staying true to their tradition of bringing new and innovative ideas to the game of cricket, PSL’s most successful franchise and winner of season 1 and 3 of the competition, Islamabad United, proudly present the world’s first cricket x art collaboration in partnership with one of Pakistan’s most iconic artists, Imran Qureshi. Under the project, AANideasLAB: IQ X IU, artist Imran Qureshi interacted with the Islamabad United players, conducting a visual art project, spread over several weeks. This collaboration aims to celebrate sport and art, two of the most universal languages we have today, bringing art to the Pakistani public through their love for the game of cricket. “Since its inception, Islamabad United has been focused on bringing innovation to the PSL and one of our missions has been to use the huge reach of cricket in introducing socially positive causes to a wider audience. I am especially enthused about this idea as it combines two of our passions – cricket and art – together, something not done before anywhere in the world. I have been thinking about this idea for a few years but Covid delayed its execution until this year. The project will help in mainstreaming visual and other arts to cricket fans in Pakistan as well as to a global audience. I am grateful to Imran Qureshi for accepting such a challenge as its inaugural artist and to the Islamabad United players who have shown flexibility for this totally new experience. Like all of you, I am keenly looking forward to seeing what creative forms this project takes,” said Ali Naqvi, owner of Islamabad United. “When Ali invited me to make a proposal for this project, it immediately clicked. I have always wanted art to be shared as widely as possible. Both arts and sports enable us to express ourselves physically, emotionally and even intellectually, allowing us to connect and communicate with each other around the world, crossing borders, cultures, languages and generations. If we blend these two languages into one, I believe we could create a powerful new vehicle and platform that could reach, and connect with, an even bigger audience. In Pakistan, Cricket provides a perfect platform for that objective. With my contribution I wanted to capture the energy of not only the sport and its players, but also the excitement and passion of the audience, the love for this game,” said Imran Qureshi. The artistic output of the project will be used in the team’s official kit as well as other ventures this season.