Daily Times

Zimbabwe all-rounder cricketer Sikandar Raza has joined Peshawar Zalmi’s team as a silver category player, sources said on Monday.

According to details, the 33-year-old Raza will be available for Zalmi’s PSL semi-final against table-toppers Multan Sultans, which is scheduled to be played tomorrow in Lahore.

It said that Raza’s availability in the squad will toughen the Zalmi that has been hit above all hard by the departure of overseas players due to the coronavirus outbreak.

In the wake of the growing Coronavirus cases in Pakistan, foreign players, including three players of Qalandars, left the country despite two days remaining for the league to wrap up.

Three foreign players of Lahore Qalandars, Seekkuge Prasanna, David Wiese and Chris Lynn, are heading back home due to growing Coronavirus threats in Pakistan.

Rilee Rossouw, Peshawar Zalmi’s Tom Banton, Carlos Brathwaite, Liam Dawson, Lewis Gregory Karachi Kings’ Alex Hales, Multan Sultans’s James Vince and Liam Livingstone and Quetta Gladiators’ Tymal Mills and Jason Roy have already left the league.

On the other hand, Lahore Qalandars have also included Pakistan batsman Abid Ali and Salman Ali Agha in their squad ahead of their semi-final match against Karachi Kings. Both players are from the silver category. The two teams will meet in the second knockout match on Tuesday. The inclusions have been approved by the Event Technical Committee which includes PCB CEO Wasim Khan, Bazid Khan, Marina Iqbal, Sameer Khosa and Dr Sohail Saleem.

Qalandars’ top star Chris Lynn will return to his home in Brisbane from Pakistan and will have to spend 14 days in self-quarantine after arriving in the country. Australia has made its border security laws tighter for any person landing in the country after midnight on Monday. The 29-year-old amassed 284 runs in the 8 matches he played for Lahore since February 21 which included a hundred and a fifty. Lahore qualified for the semis with 10 points from 10 matches.