Pietersen joins the list of foreign stars in the PSL

Pietersen joins the list of foreign stars in the PSL: Former England batsman Kevin Pietersen is the latest player to put up his hand to be part of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) to be played in February next year. Pietersen confirmed his involvement via a video message played during the launch of the 2016 PSL in Lahore on Sunday. Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Bravo are some of the prominent overseas players who will also feature in the inaugural edition of the PSL.

Speaking via a video message played during the opening ceremony, Pietersen said: “Absolutely buzzing to be a part of the Pakistani mela (event) coming up in February. I can’t wait to get it started. It looks like it is going to be a wonderful competition. Lots of fun, lots of sixes, lots of wickets, typical T20 stuff. I am really excited to be a part of this wonderful tournament.”

After months of deliberation with the marquee players the PCB was finally able to convince them. Among the overseas stars the player pool has names like Shakib-al-Hasan, Grant Elliott and Angelo Mathews. Every player signed up for the league will go into a player draft that will be held at a later time.

The inaugural season of the PSL, will be played between February 4 and 24 in 2016 and is expected to include five teams from the provincial capitals – Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar and Quetta. The official confirmation on the venue is yet to come but UAE looks the most likely option.

International signings in the PSL so far:

Australia: Brad Hodge

England: Kevin Pietersen, Ravi Bopara, Luke Wright, Tim Bresnan, Jade Dernbach, Chris Jordan

West Indies: Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard, Darren Sammy, Sunil Narine, Dwayne Bravo, Andre Russell, Lendl Simmons, Denesh Ramdin, Jason Holder

New Zealand: Jesse Ryder, Grant Elliott, James Franklin

Bangladesh: Shakib Al Hasan

Sri Lanka: Angelo Mathews, Lasith Malinga, Thisara Perera

South Africa: Johan Botha