The last time Shakib Al Hasan was seen on the field was during the Abu Dhabi T10 League. On November 30 of last year playing for Bangla Tigers, he neither scored any runs nor took a wicket. Since then a lot has happened in his cricket career. After a six-month absence Shakib returns to competitive action today.
He is set to play for Lahore Qalandars in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) against Peshawar Zalmi. Shakib arrived in Lahore from Dubai just yesterday. Interestingly another Bangladeshi star Mustafizur Rahman is also expected to return to franchise cricket today. He is likely to feature for Delhi Capitals against Gujarat Titans in the IPL.
Mustafizur was scheduled to fly to Delhi right after Bangladesh’s match against the UAE in Sharjah yesterday. Delhi Capitals are set to play at home at 8 PM Bangladesh time, and Mustafizur is strongly expected to be part of the squad. The franchise had requested his availability from the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) initially granted for just two games after the UAE series. However, Delhi pushed for his presence in all three remaining group matches which are crucial for their playoff hopes. Mustafizur has previously played two IPL seasons for Delhi.
As for Shakib this is his first stint with Lahore Qalandars. He had previously played in the PSL for Peshawar Zalmi and Karachi Kings. Today’s match is a do-or-die situation for Lahore—losing to Peshawar will eliminate them from the tournament. In this critical moment Shakib has been brought in as a replacement for Daryl Mitchell. Lahore Qalandars have made several changes to their squad. Rishad Hossain had been performing well in recent matches and Sri Lanka’s Bhanuka Rajapaksa has joined the team replacing Sam Billings and David Wiese in the overseas lineup.
Lahore sees hope in Shakib’s inclusion. The team posted a video message from him on their official Facebook page where he said: “I’m excited to be back in the PSL. I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s (today’s) match. It’s a very important game and I’m ready for it.”
UA / TDS
