Lahore Qalandars have announced a formal partnership with Yorkshire County Cricket Club on Tuesday, which is aimed towards improving the standards of cricket and allowing children to get better training from a very young age.

The pairing of the two clubs aims to enable mutual learning, development, and support at all levels, and a commitment to develop more accessible pathways to cricket for aspiring players from all backgrounds across Yorkshire.

The partnership will include:

• A player exchange programme to enable international players to learn from each other, starting with Haris Rauf joining Yorkshire as overseas player.
• Scholarships for young, aspiring players from Yorkshire travelling to, training, and playing in Lahore, including access to the Qalandars’ first-class facilities, as well as opportunities for young people from Pakistan to come to Yorkshire.
• The opportunity for Yorkshire County Cricket Club to learn from and emulate Lahore Qalandars’ Players Development Program (PDP).
• The chance for academy players from both teams to train and play in different conditions.
• A friendly game between the two sides on 16th January 2022 in Lahore at the world-famous Ghaddafi Stadium.

The Qalandars has set a strong precedent when it comes to executing effective player exchange programmes, with successful partnerships with several Australian Big Bash League teams, enabling a number of exchanged players to demonstrate their international pedigree.

The first iteration of this exchange programme will be the joining of Haris Rauf from the Qalandars to join Yorkshire County Cricket Club as its overseas professional for a period of the 2022 season.

Another key element of this partnership is an opportunity to learn from the Lahore Qalandars’ Players Development Program (PDP). The PDP was invented to engage young people in Pakistan and give a platform to young aspiring players to showcase their undiscovered talent. Each year the franchise shortlists over 150 players, provides them with kit bag essentials and gives them the opportunity to play a tournament which is broadcast nationally.

It offers a blueprint for nurturing cricket talent whilst reducing barriers to entry. Through talent scouting across Pakistan, this talent pathway has successfully levelled the playing field, unearthed home-grown talent, and provided opportunities to young people who may otherwise not have considered the sport.

Over three seasons, the PDP has engaged with just under half a million young people across Pakistan through cricket trials, and has produced some of Pakistan’s most notable players, as well as many who have progressed from no experience of playing formal cricket to playing in the Pakistan Super League. Yorkshire County Cricket Club will now work with the Qalandars to learn from its expertise in identifying and nurturing local talent from all backgrounds, with the aim of creating a similar all-inclusive program and reducing barriers to entry to cricket for young people across Yorkshire.

Haris himself went through the PDP and his contributions to the club will include both his cricketing skill on the field and his knowledge and lived experience of the PDP to help shape how Yorkshire can emulate and develop the initiative.

The partnership between YCCC and Lahore Qalandars will be launched with a friendly game between the two sides on 16th January 2022 in Lahore, following last year’s Lahore Qalandars v MCC match. This game will be an opportunity for Yorkshire players to meet their Qalandars counterparts, and to lay the foundations for future years of knowledge sharing between the two clubs.