Srinagar: In the absence of star Team India crickters, it was players from Pakistan that dominated the Lanka Premier League players auction held on Wednesday.
The Lanka Premier League is scheduled to be held from July 30 to August 22. Around 10 pakistan stars found buyer in the auction while some star players like Imad Wasim , Sarfaraz Ahmed , Azam Khan went unsold.
The Colombo Strikers brought Iftikhar Ahmed, Wahab Riaz, and Mohammad Nawaz for $50,000, $40,000, and $30,000 respectively. They will now Babar Azam and Naseem Shah, who had been pre-signed by the franchise prior to the auction.
Mohammad Hasnain and Asif Ali got sold at base price of $30,000. Mohammad Hasnain was successfully bid on by B-Love Kandy for $34,000, while Asif Ali was bought for his base price of $30,000. Kandy brought Mohammad Haris and Aamer Jamal for $20,000 and $10,000 respectively. Hasnain, Asif, Haris, and Jamal will join with Fakhar Zaman in Kandy side.
Shoaib Malik, who had previously represented the Jaffna Kings, found himself back in their ranks as they secured his services for $50,000. The Kings also added Zaman Khan, a specialist in death overs, to their squad at his base price of $30,000. Dambulla Aura strengthened their bowling attack by acquiring Pakistani pacer Shahnawaz Dahani for his base price of $20,000.
Meanwhile Sarfaraz Ahmed, Imad Wasim, and Azam Khan, Faheem Aslam, Umar Akmal, Sharjeel Khan and Haider Ali remained unsold, failing to attract bids from the participating franchises.
List of Pakistan players in LPL:
B-Love Kandy: Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hasnain, Asif Ali, Mohammad Haris, Aamer Jamal
Colombo Strikers: Babar Azam, Naseem Shah, Wahab Riaz, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz
Jaffna Kings: Shoaib Malik, Zaman Khan
Dambulla Aura: Shahnawaz Dahani
Here are the pre-signed players for each team:
Colombo Strikers: Babar Azam, Matheesha Pathirana, Naseem Shah, Chamika Karunaratne
Dambulla Aura: Mathews Wade, Kusal Mendis, Lungi Ngidi, Avishka Fernando
Jaffna Kings: David Miller, Thisara Perera, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Maheesh Theekshana
B-Love Kandy: Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Wanindu Hasaranga, Fakhar Zaman, Angelo Mathews
Galle Gladiators: Shakib Al Hasan, Dasun Shanaka, Tabraiz Shamsi, Bhanuka Rajapaksa