Misbah set to join Peshawar Zalmi

KARACHI: For three years, Misbah-ul-Haq has been the face of Islamabad United.But the 2019 edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) is likely to see the former Pakistan captain donning Peshawar Zalmi colours.

That’s because the 44-year-old is set to part ways with Islamabad after the franchise refused to retain him as a player. Peshawar, in contrast, are willing to sign him as an active player.According to reports, Misbah has backtracked on his agreement to be a mentor with Islamabad because he wants to play in the 2019 season, according to the franchise.

Islamabad said it had reached an agreement with Misbah, 44, in the lead up to the PSL player draft on November 20, but he had changed his mind and did not want to be just a mentor. Before changing his decision, Misbah reportedly offered Islamabad - his former franchise - his services as a player but the franchise was not keen.

Misbah, who is now set to ink a deal with Zalmi in the Golf cetagory, played eight matches for Islamabad in the 2018 PSL and batted only four times - making 57 runs at a strike-rate of 75. He has not played T20 cricket since March this year.

“Islamabad United, the winners of the inaugural HBL PSL and the defending PSL champions, would like to update our fans that Misbah-ul-Haq might not be a part of the franchise in the fourth edition of the Pakistan Super League, due to a late change of decision,” the franchise said. “In the weeks leading up to the draft, Islamabad United had reached an agreement with Misbah-ul-Haq regarding his appointment as the mentor of the franchise for PSL 4 and the editions going forward.

“Despite having reached that agreement the franchise was informed yesterday that Misbah wished to stay in the player draft for PSL4 for consideration as an active player. As Islamabad United has already announced its retentions and has a specific strategy for the draft, picking Misbah as a player may not be possible for the franchise.

“While this is an unexpected turn of events, we respect Misbah’s decision and would like to thank him for invaluable contribution to the rise of ISLU, and would like to wish him the best in his future endeavours.”

On November 20, the six PSL franchises will gather in Islamabad to pick players and complete their squads ahead of the 2019 season, which is scheduled to begin on February 14 in Dubai. Last week, the teams had finalised which players had been retained from the 2018 squads and which players had been let go. —with inputs from agencies