Image Credit- CA
Fast bowler Shamar Joseph of the West Indies, who
signed a contract with Peshawar Zalmi for the PSL, was assisted by his
match-winning performance against Australia on Sunday at the Gabba. It is
anticipated that he would sign on with the team at the outset and play all
tournament long.
Joseph will play for Zalmi the entire tournament, even
after Gus Atkinson joins, despite the fact that Zalmi touted Joseph as a
partial replacement for the England fast bowler. With the England Test team in
India for the five-match series that concludes on March 11, Atkinson will be
unavailable for every game except the playoffs.
The replacement and supplementary draft earlier today
did not include the notification that Joseph will be signed. Zalmi declared at
the time that they had brought in Atkinson to play the entire tournament in
place of Afghan legspinner Noor Ahmed, who was also unavailable. However,
Atkinson’s ongoing involvement with the Indian national team would have made
that unfeasible, and Zalmi subsequently declared on social media that Joseph
will take his position.
Other players signed by PSL teams in the supplementary
and replacement draft for the ninth season included Haider Ali (Islamabad
United), Johnson Charles (Multan Sultans), and Bhanuka Rajapaksa (Lahore
Qalandars). The draft was conducted on a conference call in order to replace a
number of players who were unable to play because of injury or scheduling
conflicts.
Left-arm spinner Zahid Mahmood has replaced Kieron
Pollard, who is partially out for the Karachi Kings, while Bismillah Khan, the
opener, is substituting for Sri Lankan all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga for the
Quetta Gladiators. As a backup selection, Sultans also added seam-bowling
all-rounder Mohammad Shahzad, and Islamabad recruited left-arm fast bowler Obed
McCoy from the West Indies.
The PSL takes place at the Gaddafi Stadium on February
17 and concludes at the National Stadium in Karachi on March 18, the last day
of competition. Having won the title in each of the last two editions,
Qalandars are the current champions.