Javed Afridi-owned PSL franchise, Peshawar Zalmi, has announced that Babar Azam would be joining their team for the eighth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL). Javed Afridi welcomed Babar Azam in a typical Pakhtun style, he tweeted; “PAKHAIR RAGHLAY TO ZALMI FAMILY.”
PAKHAIR RAGHLAY TO ZALMI FAMILY @babarazam258 ⚡@PeshawarZalmi#BabarYellowStorm #Zalmi pic.twitter.com/tfypNE6zwz
— Javed Afridi (@JAfridi10) November 11, 2022
Babar Azam Likely to Captain Zalmi’s Side
Babar’s six-year-long association with Karachi Kings comes to an end as the franchise traded him with the veteran all-rounder Shoaib Malik. Azam, who was previously the skipper of Kings is likely to captain the Zalmi team for the next edition of PSL. Meanwhile, Shoaib Malik said that he is excited about the new beginnings, he tweeted; “Happy to announce that I will be playing for #KarachiKings in HBLPSL 2023. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Peshawar Zalmi.”
A New day & a new challenge:
Happy to announce that I will be playing for #KarachiKings in HBLPSL 2023. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Peshawar Zalmi, Thankyou @JAfridi10.
Now back to new beginnings with @KarachiKingsARY once again ?#YehHaiKarachi #HBLPSL2023 #Pakistan
— Shoaib Malik ?? (@realshoaibmalik) November 11, 2022
We welcome master all-rounder @realshoaibmalik to the #KingSquad for the #HBLPSL8 #HBLPSLDraft #HBLPSL #YehHaiKarachi pic.twitter.com/PmThBrC7Pi
— Karachi Kings (@KarachiKingsARY) November 11, 2022
Kings have retained Sharjeel Khan, Mir Hamza, and Aamir Yamin in the Silver category and Qasim Akram in the Emerging category while Zalmi has retained seven players with Wahab Riaz and Sherfane Rutherford in Diamond and Mohammad Haris in Gold. Leading T20 cricketers from around the globe have registered themselves for the HBL PSL Player Draft 2023, with the highest number of 140 players registering from England.
The Disgruntled Cricketers
The news of Babar Azam leaving the Karachi Kings franchise has been doing rounds for quite a while. The legendary bowler, Wasim Akram has openly expressed his differences with the current skipper of the Pakistan Cricket Team. In one of his shows, he mentioned that Babar won’t sacrifice his opening position for the team. Previously, Shoaib Malik also pointed a message toward the skipper when he tweeted; “When will we come out from friendship, liking & disliking culture? Allah always helps the honest.”
– When will we come out from friendship, liking & disliking culture.
Allah always helps the honest…— Shoaib Malik ?? (@realshoaibmalik) September 11, 2022
Also read: Skipper Babar Azam Likely to Part Ways With Karachi Kings
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