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Lahore Qalandars have been a team to watch out for, due to their manner of playing the tournaments and unpredictable nature over all these years. They have been criticized over the plans of their team management, the performance and decision-making skills of their captains.
OVERVIEW: If we deeply observe the manner of their defeats in all those tournaments in which they couldn’t qualify for the knockout stages, there has been a trend of bad decisions and complicated selections.
Let’s see how they fared in previous editions of PSL and how different they could be this year.
Lahore Qalandars Performance
Previous Editions
PSL 2016: Qalandars started the tournament with two consecutive losses against Karachi and Peshawar. The team won only two of their eight group stage matches and finished last in the first edition of the PSL. Despite playing only seven games, the highest run-scorer of the tournament and winning the ‘Best Batsman’ award for his 335 runs with four fifties was none other than UMAR AKMAL During the finals, Qalandars were given the “Spirit of Game”.
| POS | TEAM | Plyd | Won | Lost | PTS |
| 1 | Peshawar Zalmi (3) | 8 | 6 | 2 | 12 |
| 2 | Quetta Gladiators (R) | 8 | 6 | 2 | 12 |
| 3 | Islamabad United (C) | 8 | 4 | 4 | 8 |
| 4 | Karachi Kings(4) | 8 | 2 | 6 | 4 |
| 5 | Lahore Qalandars(5) | 8 | 2 | 6 | 4 |
PSL 2017: In the next season, Lahore Qalandars appointed Brendon McCullum as captain. But nothing changed from the results they got in 2016. Despite some good performances they managed to win 5 of their league matches and hence they finished again at the bottom of the points table.
| POS | TEAMS | Plyd | Won | Lost | PTS |
| 1 | Peshawar Zalmi (C) | 8 | 4 | 3 | 8 |
| 82 | Quetta Gladiators (R) | 8 | 4 | 3 | 8 |
| 3 | Karachi Kings (3) | 8 | 4 | 4 | 8 |
| 4 | Islamabad United (4) | 8 | 4 | 4 | 8 |
| 5 | Lahore Qalandars (5) | 8 | 3 | 5 | 6 |
PSL 2018: The fortunes of Lahore Qalandars didn’t change much in the third edition as well. They only won 3 out of 10 games and also lost some really close matches such as that of Islamabad united in Sharjah where they lost in Super Over.
| POS | TEAM | Plyd | Won | Lost | PTS |
| 1 | Islamabad United (C) | 10 | 7 | 3 | 14 |
| 2 | Karachi Kings (3) | 10 | 5 | 4 | 11 |
| 3 | Peshawar Zalmi (R) | 10 | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| 4 | Quetta Gladiators (4) | 10 | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| 5 | Multan Sultans(5) | 10 | 4 | 5 | 9 |
| 6 | Lahore Qalandars(6) | 10 | 3 | 7 | 6 |
PSL 2019: Like all the previous seasons, there wasn’t much change in Lahore Qalandars fortune and they again finished at the bottom of the table, winning only 3 out of 10 games. Despite having star players like AB De Villiers.
| POS | TEAMS | Plyd | Won | Lost | PTS |
| 1 | Peshawar Zalmi (R) | 10 | 7 | 3 | 14 |
| 2 | Quetta Gladiators (C) | 10 | 7 | 3 | 14 |
| 3 | Islamabad United (3) | 10 | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| 4 | Karachi Kings (4) | 10 | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| 5 | Multan Sultans | 10 | 3 | 7 | 6 |
| 6 | Lahore Qalandars | 10 | 3 | 7 | 6 |
PSL 2020: In the 2020 edition of the tournament, Lahore Qalandars really turned the table around and finished as the runners-up as they were defeated by Karachi Kings in the Final.
| POS | TEAM | Plyd | Won | Lost | PTS |
| 1 | Multan Sultans (3) | 10 | 6 | 2 | 14 |
| 2 | Karachi Kings (C) | 10 | 5 | 4 | 11 |
| 3 | Lahore Qalandars (R) | 10 | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| 4 | Peshawar Zalmi (4) | 10 | 4 | 5 | 9 |
| 5 | Quetta Gladiators | 10 | 4 | 5 | 9 |
| 6 | Islamabad United | 10 | 3 | 6 | 7 |
PSL 2021: Qalandars were a team to watch out for initially in PSL 2021, as they won all their first games of the tournament. But when the tournament was shifted to Abu Dhabi, they lost their momentum and lost all their games which could not let them qualify for knockout stages.
Overall Standings
| YEAR | PLD | WON | LOSS | TIE/W | TIE/L | POSITION | SUMMARY |
| 2016 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 5/5 | GROUP STG |
| 2017 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5/5 | GROUP STG |
| 2018 | 10 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 6/6 | GROUP STG |
| 2019 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 6/6 | GROUP STG |
| 2020 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2/6 | RUNNERUP |
| 2021 | 10 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5/6 | GROUP STG |
| TOTAL | 59 | 22 | 35 | 1 | 1 | – | – |
Performance Summary
Team Qalandars have been a somewhat less consistent team as compared to other franchises. They have lacked greatly in respect to their decision-making ability and selection of the team.
How to turn tables around?
Lahore Qalandars need to assess their mistakes in all those years and sit back to make proper planning. With Shaheen Shah Afridi as their new captain this year, they need to be extremely careful in all of their decision-making processes. They will have to strengthen their mindset as they go down into the field. Players will have to pick up their roles and tick all those boxes which are needed to fill in the search for that maiden title.
Expectations will bring a lot of pressure on the team but they will have to produce something special this season for their fans. If Qalandars will go into all the matches with proper planning and their players perform according to their roles, there is no doubt at all that they are going to win the tournament and turn years of misery into joy and hope. And yes! They will turn the tables this year if they don’t hesitate to play according to the motive.
Expectations
Lahore Qalandars have a huge fanbase, mainly due to Rana Brothers and especially due to its association with one of the historical cities of Pakistan, hence there are huge expectations by the fans for them to perform and clinch their maiden PSL title.
Check:
What to expect from Pakistan Cricket in 2022
