Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchises announce last moment replacements in their squad

Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2024 is set to commence on February 17, Saturday but franchises have made some last-minute replacements as some of the players will be unavailable for the entire season while some are partially available for the season. The first match of the PSL 2024 will be played in Lahore between the defending champions Lahore Qalandars and Islamabad United as Shaheen Shah Afridi and Shadab Khan will lock horns against each other.

The captains of the PSL teams recently met for the trophy unveiling ceremony and clicked a picture with the trophy. The captains of the PSL franchises this season are as follows; Shaheen Shah Afridi (Lahore Qalandars), Shan Masood (Karachi Kings), Babar Azam (Peshawar Zalmi), Sarfaraz Ahmed (Quetta Gladiators), Mohammad Rizwan (Multan Sultans), and Shadab Khan (Islamabad United). PSL has been Pakistan’s premier T20 league with foreign flavor in the game. A few seasons were held in the UAE as the conditions were not good in Pakistan to host cricket matches.

Some players have made themselves completely unavailable for the PSL this season whereas some players have made themselves partially available for the season which has led to the franchises making some last-minute replacements in their squads for partially and completely unavailable players in the squad. Recently, Reece Topley was ruled out of the PSL after some NOC issues but he has signed for MI Emirates in the ILT20 league.

Players like Tim Seifert, Wanindu Hasaranga, and Reece Topley are expected to have partial availability in the PSL this season whereas Jamie Overton and Sufyan Muqeem are unavailable for the entire season. The HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL) 9 is ready to roll and the first match will be played between Lahore Qalandars and Islamabad United as the defending champions would like to start their campaign with a win.

Here is the list of PSL franchises and the replacements they have made:

1. Karachi Kings: Fawad Ali replaced Tim Seifert (Partial)

2. Lahore Qalandars: Lorcan Tucker and Salman Fayyaz replaced Dan Lawrence and Bhanuka Rajapaksa respectively (Partial)

3. Quetta Gladiators: Usman Tariq (Reserved), Umar Amin replaced Wanindu Hasaranga (Partial)

4. Multan Sultans: Olly Stone replaced Reece Topley (Partial)

5. Peshawar Zalmi: Paul Walter replaced Sufyan Muqeem (Full)

Pakistan Super League will conclude on 18th March after a month of high-octane cricketing action. A total of 34 matches will be played in the league which includes the four playoff games. The Lahore Qalandars have won the last two seasons and they will be hoping to make a hat-trick of victories in the PSL by winning their third title in a row. Shaheen Shah Afridi leads the side and they have players like Haris Rauf, Fakhar Zaman, Sikandar Raza, and Abdullah Shafique.

Pakistan Super League was started in 2016 and is played among six franchises in a tournament format of double round-robin and playoffs. Lahore Qalandars and Islamabad United are the two joint-most successful franchises with two titles each. Coincidentally, these two teams will kick off the PSL 2024 on Saturday, February 17. Babar Azam is the highest run-scorer in the league currently with 2935 runs in the league.