Peshawar Zalmi Team Dinner Shows How Players Aren’t Focusing on Diet [Video]

A viral clip has surfaced showing Peshawar Zalmi players stuffing their plates with a carb-heavy spread the night before the start of the Pakistan Super League (PSL X). The footage captures the likes of Babar Azam, Mohammad Haris, and others,  indulging in what looks like a last supper, leaving all of everyone wondering whether these are professional athletes or your bhookhay rishtedars at a wedding.

Fans, already disillusioned with the state of Pakistan cricket, flooded platforms like X with scathing critiques. One user’s tweet captured the collective dismay:

Look at the state of these premium players. Tomorrow, Pakistan’s premier tournament begins, and their plates are loaded with carbohydrates. There’s no seriousness from the PCB, the franchises, or the players. No wonder they’re so unfit. Unreal.

This isn’t just Peshawar Zalmi—it’s a symptom of a deeper, more chronic malaise: Pakistan cricket’s fraught relationship with fitness. While athletes worldwide pore over meal plans crafted by nutritionists, obsessing over protein ratios and recovery shakes, Pakistani players seem to be stuck in an era where eating 20 eggs means more power and pace (at least according to Aqib Javed).

The contrast is stark. International stars like Virat Kohli and Ben Stokes credit their longevity and performance to rigorous fitness regimes and tailored nutrition, yet Pakistan’s players appear blissfully unaware of such concepts.

The issue is hardly surprising, as players aren’t the only ones dropping the ball. The PCB and PSL organizers have churned out a highlight reel of gaffes that have turned Pakistan’s premier tournament into a joke on its 10th anniversary. Take the captains’ photoshoot for PSL X where Multan Sultans’ skipper, Mohammad Rizwan, rolled up in a casual t-shirt and pants instead of his team kit.