Shakib Al Hasan had been away from competitive cricket for over six months, which raised doubts about his inclusion in Lahore Qalandars’ playing XI for their unannounced quarter-final clash against Peshawar Zalmi in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) on Sunday. In the end, Lahore decided to include the left-handed all-rounder, but despite the team’s victory, Shakib couldn’t mark his return with a memorable performance.
In his return to PSL, Shakib conceded 18 runs in 2 overs against Peshawar, including two sixes. Lahore, led by Shaheen Shah Afridi, won the match by 26 runs, securing their spot in the PSL playoffs.
The match in Rawalpindi was shortened to 13 overs due to rain. Lahore posted a total of 149 runs for 8 wickets. Fakhar Zaman was the standout performer with 60 runs off 36 balls, including 7 fours and 3 sixes, while no other batsman managed to score more than 25 runs. In reply, Peshawar could only manage 123 runs for 8 wickets, confirming their elimination from the tournament.
Shakib came in to bat at number seven in the 11th over. He attempted to play a ramp shot against a wide delivery from pacer Ahmed Daniyal, but the ball was ruled wide. On the next ball, he tried again to play the ramp shot but missed and was bowled out for a golden duck.
In the fifth over, after two wickets from Salman Mirza, Shakib came on to bowl with Peshawar’s score at 35 for 3. His tight bowling gave away only five singles, with Babar Azam managing just 3 runs off 4 balls. Shakib was involved in the dismissal of Babar, who was out to Sikandar Raza in the following over.
Shakib bowled again in the 10th over when Peshawar’s score was 71 for 7. He conceded 13 runs in that over, with Daniyal hitting two sixes off him.
Peshawar failed to get any batter to score more than 30 runs, and the team was bowled out for 123. The best bowler for Lahore was left-arm pacer Salman Mirza, who took 4 wickets for 31 runs.
Before this match, Shakib last played in the Abu Dhabi T10 League for Bangla Tigers on November 30, 2022. His most recent appearance in recognized cricket was in late September 2022 during Bangladesh’s Test series in India.
During his time away from the field, Shakib had been banned from bowling due to a faulty action. However, he corrected his action and made his return. Although he didn’t find a team in the initial PSL auction, Lahore Qalandars picked him up after the tournament resumed following its suspension.
This is Shakib’s first PSL appearance in eight years. His previous experiences in the league were not particularly successful. In the 2016 season with Karachi Kings, he scored 126 runs in 8 innings at an average of 18, and took 3 wickets at an economy rate of 7.95. In the 2017 season with Peshawar Zalmi, he scored 55 runs in 5 innings at an average of 13.75 and took 5 wickets at an economy rate of 7.26.
