Quetta Gladiators: The Pakistan Super League put down roots in 2016, with a total of five teams in the competition. In 2018, one more team joined in to make it a six-team tournament. The PSL has had seven successful seasons so far. Interestingly, all of the six teams have won one season each, while Islamabad United is the only team that has won the league twice, in 2016 and 2018.
Quetta Gladiators was one of the five teams that made their debut in the inaugural season (2016). And they had a pretty good season in the first two, with two back-to-back finals. But they lost both times. In 2016, they suffered a defeat at the hands of Islamabad United, and then it was Peshawar Zalmi who beat them in 2017. but they kept doing well. Eventually, the Gladiators won their maiden title in the 2019 season, when they beat Peshawar Zalmi by 8 wickets in the final.
Captain to lead Quetta Gladiators in PSL
Former Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed, who led his country to the 2017 Champions Trophy, was the first player to lead the franchise. In fact, until now, he has been the only captain for the Quetta Gladiators in the Pakistan Super League. Sarfaraz is the most-capped PSL captain in history because he has led his team in all seven seasons.
Sarfaraz being the captain of the team for seven consecutive seasons shows the franchise believes in long-term vision. The head coach is the former Pakistani wicketkeeper Moin Khan, who has also been the coach since 2016. A number of big names have played for this franchise. Shane Watson, Kevin Pietersen, Rille Rossouw, Jason Roy, Ben Cutting, Kumar Sangakkara, Chris Gayle, Faf du Plessis, DJ Bravo, and many more superstars have been part of the franchise.
Quetta has seen many ups and downs in the PSL under Sarfaraz. Their record in 2020, 2021, and 2022 is just unforgettable. They finished 5th, 6th, and 5th in these three seasons. Overall, Sarfaraz has led the franchise in 72 games and has 36 wins, 35 losses, and one match that ended with no result. He is also the leading run scorer for the franchise. Sarfaraz has scored 1341 runs in 60 innings at an average of 31.92 and a strike rate of 126.62. He has also scored seven half centuries, with a best of 81.
Season-wise performance under Sarfaraz Ahmed
| Season | Mts | Won | Lost | NR | Tied | SR (%) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 70.00 | Runners-up |
| 2017 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 55.55 | Runners-up |
| 2018 | 11 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 45.45 | Play-offs |
| 2019 | 12 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 75.00 | Champions |
| 2020 | 9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 44.44 | League Stage |
| 2021 | 10 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 20 | League Stage |
| 2022 | 10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 40 | League Stage |
| Total | 72 | 36 | 35 | 1 | 0 | 50.70 | 1 Title |
Most runs for Quetta Gladiators in PSL
| Name | Span | Mts | Runs | HS | Avg | SR | 100/50 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sarfaraz Ahmed | 2016-2022 | 72 | 1341 | 81 | 31.92 | 126.62 | 0/7 |
| Shane Watson | 2018-2020 | 31 | 996 | 91* | 35.57 | 143.93 | 0/8 |
| Ahmed Shehzad | 2016-2020 | 35 | 904 | 99 | 28.25 | 130.25 | 0/9 |
| Rilee Rossouw | 2017-2019 | 31 | 750 | 76 | 34.09 | 128.20 | 0/3 |
| Mohammad Nawaz | 2016-2022 | 66 | 619 | 47 | 18.75 | 115.48 | 0/0 |
Most Wickets for Quetta Gladiators in PSL
| Bowler | Span | Mts | Wkts | Econ | BBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mohammad Nawaz | 2016-2022 | 66 | 61 | 7.26 | 4/13 |
| Mohammad Hasnain | 2019-2022 | 28 | 39 | 8.50 | 4/25 |
| Anwar Ali | 2016-2021 | 36 | 23 | 8.74 | 2/21 |
| Naseem Shah | 2020-2022 | 20 | 19 | 8.17 | 5/20 |
| Sohail Tanvir | 2019-2022 | 19 | 17 | 8.00 | 4/21 |