“It is routine in franchise cricket that players move.” Imad Wasim
The all rounder who has been handed over the captaincy of Karachi Kings after former skipper Babar Azam went to Peshawar Zalmi, talked to the press before the first match between the two teams.
Babar Azam had been the captain for Karachi Kings for the past six years and the new skipper accepts that his contributions to the team are undeniable however life goes on even after one player leaves the team as it very ‘common in franchise cricket’. He said, ‘There is no doubt that Babar has done a lot for Kings but he is no longer with us. We will try to make the best possible XI.”
Imad Wasim also said that he is happy for Mohammad Rizwan, as he moved from Karachi Kings to Multan Sultans and said, “We couldn’t find a place for Rizwan in the opening position and we didn’t want to play him in middle-order. I am happy that he got a chance to open for another franchise and he proved everyone wrong.”
Karachi Kings will play their first match of Pakistan Super League (PSL) 8 against Peshawar Zalmi today, 14th February, at the National Stadium Karachi.
Peshawar Zalmi Squad
Babar Azam (c), Sherfane Rutherford, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Haris, Aamir Jamal, Salman Irshad, Tom-Kohler Cadmore, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Rovman Powell, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Shakib Al Hasan, Danish Aziz, Arshad Iqbal, Saim Ayub, Usman Qadir, Suifyan Muqeem, Haseeb Ullah, Jimmy Neesham, Haris Sohail
Karachi Kings Squad
Imad Wasim (c), Matthew Wade, Imran Tahir, Haider Ali, Andrew Tye, Shoaib Malik, Mir Hamza, Tayyab Tahir, Mohammad Amir, Aamer Yamin, Irfan Khan Niazi, Qasim Akram, James Fuller, James Vince, Mohammad Akhlaq, Sharjeel Khan, Tabraiz Shamsi, Mohammad Umar