PSL 2018: Which overseas players will travel to Pakistan for the playoffs?

The last match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) in Dubai will be played today. Islamabad United and the Karachi Kings will face off each other in the ‘Qualifier’. The league will then move to Pakistan for the last three games. Lahore will host both the ‘Eliminator’ games while the finals will be played in Karachi. The league is expected to see a surge in the number of audience in the ground for these three matches.

However, all is not well as not all the foreign players are willing to visit Pakistan for these games. After the attacks on Sri Lankan Cricket Team in 2009, there isn’t much of cricket action in Pakistan. The board aims to bring cricket back to the country through this league. Let us have a look at the list of players who won’t fly to Pakistan for these games team-wise:

Peshawar Zalmi:

Just like the last year, the Peshawar Zalmi will be having a full-strength squad this year as well. The defending champions will be looking to put up a good show this year too. They ended 3rd on the points table and hence will have to go the extra mile to reach the finals.

Although all the players will be playing in Pakistan, Dwayne Smith will not be seen. He will not be travelling to Pakistan due to family commitments. Bangladesh’s skipper Shakib Al Hasan is being included in the squad in his place. Zalmi also had a full-strength squad for the PSL final in Lahore last year, where the team won the trophy after beating a depleted Quetta Gladiators.

“Just like last year, this year too all our foreign players will travel to Pakistan for PSL playoffs,” confirmed Javed Afridi, the owner of Peshawar Zalmi. He posted this news on Twitter.

پی ایس ایل ٹو فائنل کی طرح پی ایس ایل تھری کے لیے بھی پشاور زلمی کے تمام غیر ملکی کرکٹرز پاکستان آرہے ہیں.جن کا میں شکریہ ادا کرتا ہوں. لاہور کے دونوں پلے آف اور کراچی فائنل کے لیے پاکستان اور پی سی بی کو پشاور زلمی کی جانب سے گڈ لک .
#HumZalmi #Peshawarzalmi

— Javed Afridi (@JAfridi10) March 16, 2018

Karachi Kings:

Karachi Kings will play the ‘Qualifier’ game in Dubai tonight. The team will then fly to Pakistan. But, all the players of the squad are not expected to be going to Pakistan. However, an official of Karachi Kings confirmed to Geo.tv that at least five of the players have expressed their consent to visit Pakistan.

“Karachi Kings foreign players Joe Denly, Tymal Mills, Colin Ingram, Lendl Simmons and David Weisse are all ready to travel to Pakistan for the playoffs,” the team spokesman said. Ravi Bopara, who is also a part of this squad has confirmed earlier that he’ll fly to Pakistan.

However, English skipper Eoin Morgan will miss out on the last few games. He stated that he can’t go to Pakistan due to personal family reasons.

Islamabad United:

The Islamabad United team will be up against the Karachi Kings in the ‘Qualifier’ today. They finished top of the points table and will hope to put up a good show today. Just like the Kings, at least five of the foreign players are expected to play in Pakistan according to sources.

“Most of Islamabad United’s foreign players will come to Pakistan, while a couple of others will make a call on Saturday after meeting security experts,” said the source. Three Islamabad United players – Samit Patel, JP Duminy and Luke Ronchi – have told Geo.tv in interviews earlier that they will travel to Pakistan.

West Indian batsman Chadwick Walton and spinner Samuel Badree have also agreed to visit Pakistan. Meanwhile, the franchise is hopeful that England’s Sam Billings and Steven Finn will also give a positive response.

Quetta Gladiators:

Quetta Gladiators is in the worst position amongst all these four teams. Just like last year, they’ll fly to Pakistan this year with quite a depleted side. This was one of the primary reasons as to why they lost the finals in the previous edition.

England opener Jason Roy, star batsman Kevin Pietersen, Australian veteran Shane Watson and all-rounder Ben Laughlin have expressed unwillingness to visit Pakistan for the knockout games. These players form the core of their side and have played a crucial part in their success this year. On the positive side, Sri Lanka’s Thisara Perera and Chris Green of Australia will join Quetta Gladiators squad in Lahore on March 19 for the eliminators.

Perera, who was also part of the World XI squad which toured Pakistan last year, was initially picked by Multan Sultans but did not play a single match. He has subsequently been permitted to represent Quetta Gladiators in the playoffs. Yorkshire’s Tom Kohler-Cadmore will also join the Gladiators squad for the playoffs. West Indian batsman Johnson Charles has also been picked by Quetta for the latter stages of the tournament.

The franchise is hopeful that Mahmudullah of Bangladesh will be available for the playoffs once he is free from national duty on March 18. South African star Rilee Rossouw may also travel to Pakistan.

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