De Villiers, Smith headline PSL foreign platinum players list
Pakistan Super League returns to action on February 14, 2019
October 04, 2018
Australian batsman Steve Smith has become the second high profile player to sign for the fourth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL).
Last month, South Africa’s AB de Villiers had announced that he will be participating in the upcoming edition of PSL.
Windies trio of Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard and Sunil Narine are also part of the platinum players list. Bravo was picked by Peshawar Zalmi last year but could not join the team due to an injury.
Moreover, Multan Sultan’s all-rounder Pollard said he is looking forward to playing in the PSL once again.
"PSL is an extremely competitive tournament and I look forward to playing in it,” he said.
Narine, who has been an integral part of the Lahore Qalandars squad, shared his excitement at seeing so many stars sign up for the 2019 edition.
"I enjoyed my time in the last season," Narine said, adding, "Next year should be even bigger and better with such an impressive player roster.”
Australian star Chris Lynn, who was ruled out of last year’s tournament for Lahore Qalandars due to an injury, has also signed for the upcoming season of PSL.
Lynn is joined by fellow Australian star Shane Watson who topped the batting charts for Quetta Gladiators last season with 319 runs in 10 matches.
New Zealand wicket-keeper batsman Luke Ronchi moves from the Diamond category to Platinum this year due to his prolific form in the last season.
Ronchi was the highest run-scorer for Islamabad United with 435 runs in 11 matches.
"I had a phenomenal run in PSL last year and I can't wait to get back into action," said Ronchi.
"I loved the hospitality of the people when we played in Karachi and we managed to create some very special memories by lifting the trophy last year," he added.
Ronchi’s former New Zealand teammates Brendon McCullum and Mitchell McClenaghan also join him on the list.
Afghanistan's spin sensation Rashid Khan will be looking to play his first edition of the league. He is currently placed on the Quetta Gladiators roster.
While Sri Lankan all-rounder Thisara Perera is also in the mix as a Platinum category player. Perera has represented Gladiators in the past.
South African and Karachi Kings batsman Colin Ingram returns to the mix as a Platinum signing on the back of a very successful T20 campaign in England where he scored 430 runs in 11 matches this season.
“Playing with Karachi Kings gave me a great opportunity to interact with some lovely people from Pakistan," said Ingram.
"The quality of cricket in PSL stood out for me but, more importantly, I am very proud of the fact that I played in Pakistan and experienced what this game means to Pakistani fans,” he added.
Foreign players who were a part of last year's PSL can be retained, traded or released into the draft pool.
“This is a very exciting mix of top quality foreign players,” Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ehsan Mani said.
“In the next few days, PSL will continue to announce more foreign player signings in various categories as the excitement grows around what should be an extremely interesting player draft,” he added.
PSL returns to action on February 14, 2019.
