Karachi Kings trade Babar Azam to Peshawar Zalmi

Pakistan skipper Babar Azam will play for Peshawar Zalmi in the upcoming edition of the Pakistan Super League. Karachi Kings - Babar's previous franchise - have traded him for Haider Ali and Shoaib Malik.

As of now, Babar is the only player in the Platinum category for Peshawar. Wahab Riaz and Sherfane Rutherford are in THE Diamond category, while Mohammad Haris, who has lightened up the 2022 T20 World Cup with his fearless batting, is in the Gold. Peshawar are the only side to retain seven players. 

Haider is Karachi’s only player in the platinum category, while Malik joins Imad Wasim and Mohammad Amir in the Diamond. They have retained Sharjeel Khan, Mir Hamza and Aamir Yamin in the Silver category and Qasim Akram in the Emerging.

Lahore Qalandars, the defending champions, have kept retained Shaheen Afridi, their captain, and Rashid Khan in the Platinum category. Meanwhile, Multan Sultans have retained middle-order batters Khushdil Shah and Rilee Rossouw in the Diamond category and Tim David in the Gold. Their captain Mohammad Rizwan is their only retention in the Platinum.

Islamabad United have retained their skipper Shadab Khan in the Platinum category. Quetta Gladiators have retained Mohammad Nawaz, who has been with them since the inaugural edition, in the Platinum. Jason Roy and Iftikhar Ahmed are retained in the Diamond category.

During the trade and retention window, a side can assemble up to eight players before the PSL Player Draft, in which it can increase the squad side to 18 players - three each in Platinum, Diamond and Gold categories, five Silver, two Emerging and up to two Supplementary categories. As it was last year, each of the six sides will have the Right to Match Card that will allow them to pick any player released from their roster during the draft.

The likes of Alex Hales, David Miller, Mujeeb ur Rehman, Nicholas Pooran, Rilee Rossouw, Sikandar Raza, Wanindu Hasaranga, and many other top international players have registered themselves for the PSL Player Draft 2023. 493 players, of which 29 are in Platinum category and 81 in Diamond , from both full-member and associate nations have made themselves available for the player draft.

Full list of retained players:

Islamabad United: Shadab Khan (Platinum). Asif Ali (Brand Ambassador) and Mohammad Wasim Jnr (Diamond). Azam Khan, Faheem Ashraf and Hasan Ali (Gold). Colin Munro and Paul Stirling (Silver).

Karachi Kings: Haider Ali (Platinum). Imad Wasim, Mohammad Amir and Shoaib Malik (Diamond). Aamir Yamin, Mir Hamza and Sharjeel Khan (Silver). Qasim Akram (Emerging).

Lahore Qalandars: Rashid Khan and Shaheen Shah Afridi (Platinum). David Wiese (Diamond). Abdullah Shafique (Gold). Harry Brook and Kamran Ghulam (Silver). Zaman Khan (Emerging). The eighth retention to be announced in due course.

Multan Sultans: Mohammad Rizwan (Platinum). Khushdil Shah, Rilee Rossouw and Shan Masood (Diamond). Shahnawaz Dahani (Brand Ambassador) and Tim David (Gold). Abbas Afridi and Ihsanullah (Emerging).

Peshawar Zalmi: Babar Azam (Platinum). Sherfane Rutherford and Wahab Riaz (Diamond). Mohammad Haris (Gold). Aamir Jamal (Brand Ambassador), Salman Irshad and Tom-Kohler Cadmore (Silver).

Quetta Gladiators: Mohammad Nawaz (Platinum). Iftikhar Ahmed and Jason Roy (Diamond). Mohammad Hasnain and Sarfaraz Ahmed (Gold). Naveen ul Haq, Umar Akmal (Mentor) and Will Smeed (Silver).

(With inputs from the PSL media release)