PCB shifts President’s Trophy matches from Peshawar and Abbottabad amid political unrest

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has moved the ongoing first-class President's Trophy Grade 1 tournament out of Peshawar and Abbottabad amid political turmoil in the region. The federal government has declared a state of emergency and imposed governor's rule in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province where the two cities are located.

The ongoing edition of the President’s Trophy has been hosted in four cities so far, namely Peshawar, Abbottabad, Islamabad and Rawalpindi. The matches in Islamabad and Rawalpindi will continue as per the schedule. 

However, the fixtures scheduled to be held at the Imran Khan Stadium in Peshawar and Abbottabad Cricket Stadium have been rescheduled to begin on October 14 at Rana Naveed Academy in Sheikhupura (Ghani vs Hyderabad Kingsmen Academy) and the LCCA Ground.

The ongoing round is the penultimate round of the league stage. According to Cricinfo, LCCA Ground will also host the final-round fixture between Markhor IT Solutions and Pakistan TV. Meanwhile, the National Cricket Ground in Islamabad will stage the clash between Hyderabad Kingsmen Academy and State Bank of Pakistan.

State Bank of Pakistan leading President's Trophy table

The final round of matches has been postponed by a day and will now begin on October 19. The President’s Trophy league stage follows a round-robin format, with all eight teams facing each other once. The top two sides at the end of the league stage will qualify for the final, whose venue is yet to be confirmed.

State Bank of Pakistan are currently leading the President's Trophy table with 84 points, followed by Ghani, who have 70 points to their name.