Daily Times

LAHORE: West Indies player Darren Sammy has played a major role in the return of top-flight cricket to Pakistan, and the country has decided to express its gratitude in style, by extending an honorary citizenship to the former Windies captain. Arif Alvi, the Pakistan President, has signed off on the same, and Sammy will also receive the Nishan-e-Pakistan, the country’s top civilian award, on March 23 in Islamabad. Sammy, 36, has been Zalmi’s premier marquee player from the beginning of the Pakistan Super League. Ahead of the second edition, Shahid Afridi, who led the team in the first season, stepped down and handed the reins to Sammy, and he has led them since –– they won the title in 2017 and were the losing finalists in 2018 and 2019. More than that, though, it’s Sammy’s support to the Pakistan cause that has endeared him to people in the country. He was the first to agree to tour Pakistan when the PCB wanted to bring the PSL final to the country. Then, when an ICC World XI was lined up tour Pakistan for three T20Is in September 2017, Sammy –– a part of that squad –– spoke to the other tourists as part of a security briefing.