Multan cricket followers finally have clarity. Sialkot Stallionz – one of this season’s two new Pakistan Super League outfits – have chosen to re-badge themselves as Multan Sultans, restoring a familiar name that looked to have disappeared only a month ago.
PSL chief executive Salman Naseer confirmed the switch at a low-key press conference in Lahore, seated alongside the franchise’s incoming chief executive, Gohar Shah. Shah, a former first-class batter, now fronts the club on behalf of majority owners CD Ventures.
“The first thing Gohar did upon assuming the role of CEO was submitting an application to the PCB. He agreed to pay the one-time franchise fee to change the name, and now this team will be known as Multan Sultans,” Naseer said. He added that CD Ventures had also agreed to lift the annual franchise payment to PKR 2 billion, a figure he described as “a fair reflection of the Multan brand’s value inside the PSL eco-system”.
The return has been in the air all week. Last Friday Naseer told supporters to “wait 48 hours”, hinting that positive news was on the way. Social-media speculation did the rest.
How did the Sultans leave in the first place? In February previous owner Ali Tareen chose not to renew his lease. The PCB auctioned the rights and tech firm Walee Technologies placed the top bid: PKR 2.45 billion per year, comfortably the league’s highest valuation. Walee promptly shifted the team to Rawalpindi and christened it Pindiz, signalling – or so it seemed – the end of the Multan era after eight PSL seasons and one title, won in 2021.
Walee’s purchase, though, sparked a complicated tussle behind the scenes. Enter CD Ventures, who picked up 98 per cent of the newly formed Stallionz less than a fortnight after the original sale. Their first order of business was to relocate again, this time back to Multan.
“I want my region to be represented, which is Multan, and South Punjab. It was very important for me that Multan stayed in the PSL, and will continue to stay in the future,” Shah said, outlining the new owners’ motivation.
Beyond the renaming, Naseer confirmed that this year’s opening ceremony will be staged at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium, followed by the curtain-raiser between defending champions Lahore Qalandars and fellow expansion side Hyderabad Kingsmen.
There is still plenty of paperwork to complete – from venue logistics to merchandise – yet the essential detail is settled. Multan Sultans are back on the fixture list, their badge patched on to the Stallionz playing kit. For supporters in South Punjab the jersey will look almost the same, even if the route back to existence was anything but straightforward.
