KARACHI: Three-time champions Islamabad United on Tuesday confirmed the list of retained players ahead of the historic Pakistan Super League (PSL) 11-man auction to be held on February 11.
For the first time in league history, the player selection process has undergone a major overhaul, replacing the traditional draft system with an auction-based model.
Earlier, franchises were allowed to retain eight players, a rule that was in effect for the first 10 seasons.
However, as per the revised rules for PSL 11, teams were only allowed to retain a total of four players from multiple divisions, making the decision challenging ahead of the auction.
A total of 15 players participated in various categories. The Platinum category included captain Shatab Khan, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Ali Agha, Mohammad Nawaz and Imad Wasim, while no players were listed in the Diamond category.
The gold category featured Azam Khan, Haider Ali, Salman Irshad and Ramman Raees, while the silver category featured Mohammad Faiq and Hunain Shah. Saad Masood, Mohammad Shahzad and Ghazi Ghauri were placed in the Emerging category.
From these options, United retained Shadab Khan in the Platinum category, Salman Irshad in Gold and Andries Kause of the United States in Silver, while retaining no player from the Diamond category and none from the Emerging category.
With the Pakistan Super League set to grow from six to eight teams, the upcoming edition will also mark a major expansion of the league.
Hyderabad and Sialkot Stallions are new additions to the PSL family and will debut in the upcoming season.
After bidding 1.75 billion (approx. $6.25 million), the winning bidder was Mr. Fawad Sarwar took ownership of Hyderabad, thereby taking ownership of the new team.
Meanwhile, the franchise of Sialkot Stallionz was won by Mr Hamza Majeed who paid Rs. He topped the bidding for 1.85 billion, earning the right to lead the Stallions into their inaugural PSL campaign.
For non-readers, the 11th edition of the competition will begin on March 26 and run until May 3.
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