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The Pakistan Super League (PSL) has found itself in hot water over its artist selection for the 10th edition of the annual cricket tournament. On Tuesday, the PSL announced that Ali Zafar would be performing the official anthem for PSL X, marking his fifth time doing so. The decision, however, is not sitting well with some people, including Multan Sultans’ owner Ali Khan Tareen, who took to Instagram to express his disappointment over the repeated selection of the same artist.

Tareen, in his Instagram story, wrote, “Pakistan has so many amazing artists. Yet almost half of our anthems have been given to the same middle-aged dude, despite franchises raising concerns about the artist. They talk about making this the biggest PSL ever, yet keep giving space to the same recycled voices…”

For the unversed, Zafar delivered the league’s first three anthems — ‘Ab Khel Ke Dikha’ (2016), ‘Ab Khel Jamay Ga’ (2017), and ‘Dil Se Jaan Laga De’ (2018) — and made a comeback with ‘Khul Ke Khel’ in 2024. His 2024 song was a bumpy road as he was initially separated from the anthem over his court case with singer Meesha Shafi.

At the time, a source told Dawn that a majority of the franchises were initially on board with hiring Zafar but eventually yielded to the pressure by one franchise.

Despite the opposition, his anthem with Aima Baig ended up releasing.

Many X (formerly Twitter) users flocked to Zafar and the PSL’s posts announcing his return to perform the anthem, echoing Tareen’s sentiments.

One user wrote, “Is there anyone else in Pakistan who can sing?” Another commented, “Not moving on from Ali Zafar after this many PSL seasons shows how much the country has progressed…..not!”

A user asked, “Is it official this time, bro?” — a reference to the unofficial anthems Zafar has released in the past after being snubbed by the PSL. Another remarked, “In Pakistan, do we not have a cricket coach other than Azhar Mahmood or an artist other than the overrated singer that is Ali Zafar?”

However, not everyone was upset about the decision. Some felt the outrage was unnecessary. “We have 99 problems and this isn’t even one,” wrote a user on Instagram. Another added, “PSL is not about the anthem, it is about cricket, which is going down with every passing day. Concentrate on that.”

Others defended Zafar’s selection while still advocating for more variety in PSL anthems. “Be real. Ali Zafar’s PSL anthems are more energetic. Many other artists have done these anthems, including Atif Aslam, Fawad Khan, Naseebo Lal. But it is also true that Ali has done more of them, and some things were repeated. Other people should also get a chance, like Farhan Saeed, Ali Sethi, Shae Gill, and Asim Azhar. But honestly, Pakistanis are not interested in PSL anymore,” a user wrote.

A release date for Zafar’s PSL X anthem hasn’t been announced. The tournament will kick off on April 11.