The 2018 Pakistan Super League (also known as PSL 3 or for sponsorship reasons, HBL PSL 2018) was the third season of the Pakistan Super League, a franchise Twenty20 cricket league which was established by the Pakistan Cricket Board in 2015. It featured six teams, which was the first expansion of the league since its formation in 2015. The group stage took place in the United Arab Emirates, with two playoff matches played in Lahore and the final at the National Stadium, Karachi. The tickets for the final were sold out quickly, within fifteen hours.
In the final match, the inaugural champions Islamabad United defeated the defending champions Peshawar Zalmi by three wickets in Karachi to win the title for a second time. Luke Ronchi of Islamabad United was named the Man of the Match of the Final, as well as the player of the tournament and also the leading run scorer, scoring 435 runs in the tournament. Faheem Ashraf of Islamabad United was awarded the best bowler award; as both he and Wahab Riaz of Peshawar Zalmi took 18 wickets to lead the wicket-takers list.
Background
After the success of holding the previous tournament's final at the Gaddafi Stadium, the PCB decided to play eight games of PSL 3 in Pakistan. In addition the PCB chairman Najam Sethi confirmed there would be a sixth team being added in the 2018 edition, with the idea having previously been rejected in 2017. There was much interest in what the sixth team would be, with the PCB shortlisting Hyderabad, Dera Murad Jamali, FATA, Faisalabad and Multan. In the end, the winning party was Multan with Schön Properties paying $5.2 million a year.
Ceremonies
Opening ceremony
In the opening ceremony, which was hosted in Dubai, American pop singer Jason Derulo featured alongside Pakistani singers including Abida Parveen, Ali Zafar and Shehzad Roy. Hareem Farooq and Bilal Ashraf hosted the ceremony. The ceremony also featured the Pakistani Sachal Orchestra and a firework display, with a teaser of Zafar's first Pakistani film Teefa in Trouble also being shown.
Closing ceremony
The Closing ceremony took place at National Stadium, Karachi, on 25 March ahead of the final. The ceremony was hosted by Bilal Ashraf, with Pakistani singers Ali Zafar, Shehzad Roy, Strings, Aima Baig and Farhan Saeed performing live in front of 33,000 people in the stadium.
Teams and squads
The 2018 PSL featured six team franchises, with five teams that appeared in previous seasons; and a new team based in Multan.
The player draft for the 2018 season was held in Lahore on 12 November 2017. 501 players, including both Pakistani and international players, were divided into five different categories. Each franchise was allowed to pick a maximum of seven foreign players in their squads, which could have a maximum of 21 members.
Officials
The panel of officials for the tournament consisted of eight umpires and two match referees. Aleem Dar, Ranmore Martinesz and Tim Robinson stood in matches during the tournament. Pakistani umpires Ahmed Shahab, Shozab Raza, Rashid Riaz, Khalid Mehmood and Asif Yaqoob were also part of the panel as well. The match referees panel consisted of former Sri Lankan ICC match referee Roshan Mahanama and Pakistani match referee Mohammad Anees.
Venues
Like the 2016 and 2017 seasons, most of the matches of 2018 season were played in the UAE. However, the playoffs and final took place in Pakistan; they were played in Lahore and Karachi. Each foreign cricketer who played matches in the country was paid an extra for each of these matches.
The International Cricket Council security team visited National Stadium, Karachi, on 23 October, to ensure its condition. The chairman of the PCB Najam Sethi was quoted on 22 November saying "that the renovation of stadium will be completed in February 2018, to host the PSL Final." The tickets for the final were sold out within 3 hours.
Promotion in media
The league was promoted on social media by the hashtag #HBLPSL 2018, due to its three-year contract (2016–18) with HBL Pakistan for title sponsorship. Also, the six teams are promoted by #AbKhel6Ka. It was also promoted by #DilSeJaanLagaDe, the hashtag for the league's official anthem by Ali Zafar.
Season standings
Points table
Notes: C = Champions; R = Runner-up; (x) = Position at the end of the tournament;
League stage
The league stage of the tournament ran from 22 February to 16 March 2018.