'World's most beautiful' Gwadar stadium hosts its first cricket match

Web Desk

February 19, 2021

British High Commissioner Christian Turner officiates the toss between Waseem Khan (R) and Zulfi Bukhari (L). Photo: Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis on Twitter.

Excited fans take to Twitter to share pictures from the exhibition match
Showbiz Sharks, led by Waseem Khan, locks horns with Gwadar Dolphins led by SAPM Zulfi Bukhari
Prayers offered for Pakistani mountaineer Ali Sadpara

GWADAR: It was a sight for sore eyes as the cricket stadium in the city, dubbed by many as the world's most beautiful one, hosted its first ever cricket match on Friday.

The picturesque stadium, surrounded by the majestic mountains and hills, is hosting a match between the Showbiz Sharks Vs the Gwadar Dolphins.

According to a report, the Showbiz Sharks is being led by PCB CEO Waseem Khan and will include Fakhr-e-Alam, Faysal Qureishi, Ali Zafar, Saleem Sheikh, Aijaz Aslam, Shezad Roy, Sami Khan, Kamran Jeelani, Salman Saeed, Ali Safina and Noman Habib.

The Dolphins, on the other hand, are being led by Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Overseas Pakistanis Zulfi Bukhari and features local players and Ali Zaidi and the GOC Gwadar.

British High Commissioner to Pakistan, Christian Turner, officiated the toss between Zulfi Bukhari and Waseem Khan.

"What a stadium," said Turner. "It's the most beautiful stadium in the world, in my opinion," he added.

Bukhari's Sharks won the toss and the skipper elected to bowl first.

"Our batting and bowling line-ups are both strong so we are looking forward ot the game," said Waseem Khan.

Cricket buffs couldn't hold back from tweeting pictures of the stadium. Here are some of the tweets:

The Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis decided to jump on the "Pawri Hori Hai" bandwagon.

One Twitter account uploaded the new PSL banger playing loudly in the stadium.

Zulfi Bukhari's ministry tweeted a few pictures of the Dolphins' captain on the field.

Turner himself was pretty excited to be at the venue.

Before the game commenced, prayers for Pakistani mountaineer Ali Sadpara and the other two foreign climbers were held who went missing with him on their adventurous expedition to K2.

Sadpara was recently declared dead by his family.

Another avid sports follower tweeted a couple of pictures of the stadium, showcasing the stadium's staffer preparing the ground for the action ahead.

The stadium was first highlighted by singer, actor and TV personality Fakhar-e-Alam, who tweeted pictures and videos from the stadium.

Soon, the International Cricket Council (ICC) caught wind of it and shared pictures of the stadium, upsetting some Indian cricket fans in the process.