Shahid Afridi, James Vince, Iftikhar Ahmed traded to Quetta Gladiators ahead of PSL 2022 drafts

Veteran all-rounder Shahid Afridi is set to play for the Quetta Gladiators in the 2022 edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL). It’s going to be the fourth team for the 41-year-old after he last played for the Karachi Kings, Multan Sultans and the Peshawar Zalmi. In the previous edition, he was a part of the Sultans, who won their maiden PSL title under the leadership of Mohammad Rizwan.

In the Gladiators, Afridi is most likely to play under Sarfaraz Ahmed’s captaincy. Afridi has been plying his trade in the PSL since 2016 and the upcoming edition may well be his last season in the T20 championship. The former Pakistan all-rounder wished to sign off from the PSL after guiding the Gladiators through to title glory.

PSL is an event that encourages a player to give his very best, says Shahid Afridi

“I am excited to join Quetta Gladiators, a side that has had a roller-coaster ride in the past few events despite winning the title in 2019. In my final HBL PSL event, it will my dream and wish to sign off with another HBL PSL trophy after tasting success with Peshawar Zalmi in 2017.

“HBL PSL is an event that encourages and inspires a player to give his very best. I will use the same motivation to help my team and put in performances that can help us achieve our event objectives,” Afridi said on PSL’s official website.

Along with Afridi, James Vince has also been traded from the Sultans to the Gladiators. Iftikhar Ahmed, who played for the Islamabad United last season, will hone his skills along with Vince and Afridi in the Gladiators. Iftikhar sounded delighted on his re-union with Afridi in the PSL.

“I am thrilled to be re-joining Shahid Afridi at Quetta Gladiators after 2017, when we last played together in HBL PSL. Quetta Gladiators include a number of my contemporaries with whom I have played lot of cricket. I am sure the HBL PSL 7 will be an exciting and entertaining event,” Iftikhar said.

Young wicketkeeper Azam Khan, who represented the Gladiators last season, will play for the United in the upcoming season. The PSL draft is scheduled to take place at the High Performance Centre in Lahore on Sunday, 12 December.