The Pakistan Junior League (PJL) has officially confirmed the names of six mentors for six respective franchises to take charge of their duties in the tournament's first season. The PJL 1 is set to take place at Lahore's Gadaffi Stadium from October 6th to 21st and will feature six teams in the inaugural edition.
According to the details, the six teams are Bahawalpur (Southern Punjab), Gujranwala (Central Punjab), Gwadar (Balochistan), Hyderabad (Sindh), Mardan (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) and Rawalpindi (Northern). The ambition of the T20 tournament is to provide a PSL-like competitive tournament for U-19 cricketers to polish and showcase their talent.
South Africa's Imran Tahir has been named the mentor for Bahawalpur, whereas Shoaib Malik will take charge of his duties for Gujranwala. Gwadar will have West Indies legend Sir Viv Richards as their mentor, and Hyderabad will enjoy the services of Darren Sammy. Mardan and Rawalpindi will be mentored by charismatic Shahid Khan Afridi and New Zealand's power-hitter Colin Munro.
It must be noted that former Pakistani cricketer Javed Miandad will lead the overall six-member panel, helping and assisting all sides. The board has also confirmed the player draft for the tournament, which will be held in Lahore on 6th September. Details for the PJL 1 draft process will be announced shortly.
Notably, over 140 players from Afghanistan, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, England, Ireland, Nepal, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Scotland, Sri Lanka, West Indies, Zimbabwe and the United Arab Emirates have completed their registrations for the tournament through their respective cricket boards as well as clubs and professional representative submissions.
