Many thanks to [MENTION=2016]Rana[/MENTION] for his preview of the upcoming season:
Peshawar Zalmi
The first most intriguing team of this year’s PSL is Javed Afridi’s men in yellow who will look to lift the trophy once again, this time under the leadership of the current captain of the Pakistan Men’s T20 side (Babar Azam). The attention that has been draw to Zalmi by Babar’s transfer and further appointment to leadership is a sign of great trust the franchise has in the ability of Babar to lead them to silverware (which has not been his specialty so far as a captain in this format). Babar will get his opportunity to silence severe critics of his captaincy on Day 2 of the tournament when Zalmi open’s their campaign against Karachi Kings. Rest assured, this will be a very romantic encounter from the coldest depths of the earth on the 14th of February. The fixture might hold bad blood, but there is plenty of young blood that is ready to step up for Zalmi, and other players to look out for in this year’s edition:
Saim Ayub has been the breakaway star from the Pakistan cup. The flambouyant, dashing young left handed opener is a breath of fresh air to watch batting in the Powerplay considering Pakistan national teams lack of urgency visible in the first 6 overs. A smart pick by Zalmi who will look to open him or pair him up with Muhammad Harris who captured the imagination of the world with his clutch performances against South Africa, Bangladesh and New Zealand in the recently concluded world cup. We hope that Zalmi allows the two, young and energetic batsmen open the innings and give us a glimpse of Pakistan’s potential opening combination.
Aamer Jamal will look to further enhance his reputation as a bowling all-rounder after impressing against England in the 7 T20i series, and Arshad Khan who has all the ingredients to become a top quality fast bowler will also have to do a lot of hard work in ensuring there is a fair balance between batting and bowling quality in the Zalmi squad.
Overseas players have always been important to any franchise’s campaign as they bring experience and the edge to the side in order to get them over the line. This year, Zalmi’s big overseas acquisition comes in the form of Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Jimmy Neesham. Pakistan are well aware of Bhanuka’s ability to shift gears and anchor if necessary, whilst Neeshan is a proven lower order six hitter and a decent medium pacer. It will be interesting to see if these key players can play the entire tournament or how they fit in to Babar’s plans.
Full Squad:
Babar Azam, Sherfane Rutherford, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Haris, Aamir Jamal, Salman Irshad, Tom-Kohler Cadmore, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Rovman Powell, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Danish Aziz, Arshad Iqbal, Saim Ayub, Usman Qadir, Suifyan Muqeem, Haseeb Ullah, Jimmy Neesham, Khurram Shahzad, Haris Sohail
Richard Gleeson (partial replacement for Rovman Powell)
