11 Pakistan players signed in the Global T20 Canada League
The first edition of the Global T20 Canada League is all set to roll out this month. The T20 promises to be a great stage for the budding young cricketers of Canada. They will get a chance to rub shoulders with some of the greats of the game. A lot of international stars have signed up for the league and there is no shortage of big names in the overseas pool. As many as 11 players from Pakistan have been signed up in the league.
The drafts saw the competing franchise place their bids for the players recently. The Edmonton Royals looked like the team most interested in roping in the services of the Pakistani players. As many as 6 players were picked by them in the drafts of the inaugural season. Former Pakistani skipper Shahid Afridi went in to the drafts as a marquee player and he snapped by the Royals.
Along with Afridi, the international pace duo of Mohammad Irfan and Sohail Tanvir have also been picked in the side. Asif Ali, Hasan Khan, and Agha Salman are the other three players taken by the Royals. Agha Salman is being tipped to be the next big thing in Pakistan batting. He was seen playing for the Lahore Qalandars in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) earlier this year.
Meanwhile, the Toronto Nationals also showed great interest in the Pakistani players. Veteran wicketkeeper batsman Kamran Akmal was picked up by them. Akmal is a renowned hitter of the cricket ball and has been in sensational form in the domestic cricket in the recent times. He will be joined by pacer Rumman Raees in the Toronto lineup. Raees has been out of action since PSL 2018 where he had picked up an injury whilst playing for the Islamabad United.
The other two players picked up by the Toronto Nationals are Usama Mir and Hussain Talat. The other team that snapped a Pakistani player is the Montreal Tigers. They managed to bag the services of veteran all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez. In addition to the players, Waqar Younis will be adding the Pakistan flavor in the coaching duties in the tournament. Waqar Younis has been named as the head coach of the Winnipeg Hawks in the competition this year.