Mazher Arshad@MazherArshad
My thoughts from the opening day of the PSL. Lahore Qalandars look like a very strong side, largely due to their pace attack (Shaheen, Rauf, Ubaid and Mustafiz).
Rauf, in particular, could rack up plenty of wickets this season especially if they persist with four fast bowlers, which allows him to be used later in the innings (his first over today came in the 10th).
The Lahore pitches also favoured fast bowlers in the early part of the 2025 season, and if that trend continues, Lahore will enjoy a clear home advantage.
That could mean Usama Mir misses out on a few games. Overall, I see Lahore finishing in the top four, with a strong chance of making the top two as well.
Hyderabad, on the other hand, appear relatively weak especially in the fast bowling department.
Another concern is their batting composition which has too many top-order players (Saim, Usman, Labuschagne, Kusal Perera, Maaz) making it tricky to build a solid middle order.
The specialist middle-order options like Rizwan and Irfan also lack experience. They will need significant adjustments if they are to push for a top-four finish.