Peshawar Zalmi have decided to retain captain Babar Azam for the 11th edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), as franchises continue to finalize player retentions ahead of the upcoming auction, 24NewsHD TV reported on Tuesday.
According to sources, Zalmi have opted to release opener Saim Ayub, despite both players being part of the franchise’s platinum category.
Under PSL regulations, each franchise is permitted to retain only one player per category, making Ayub available to all teams at the players’ auction.
A total of 13 players were placed across various categories by the Lahore Qalandars.
The Platinum category included captain Shaheen Afridi, Fakhar Zaman and Haris Rauf, while Momin Qamar featured in the Emerging category.
The Silver category comprised Mohammad Akhlaq, Mohammad Naeem and Mohammad Azab, whereas the Gold category included Zaman Khan, Jahandad Khan, Asif Afridi and Asif Ali.
The Diamond category featured Abdullah Shafique and Mohammad Salman Mirza.
From these options, Lahore Qalandars retained Shaheen Afridi in the Platinum category, Abdullah Shafique from Diamond, Sikandar Raza from Gold, Mohammad Naeem from Silver while opting not to retain any player from Emerging category.
A total of 14 players were placed across various categories by Quetta Gladiator.
The Platinum category included Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Amir and Abrar Ahmed, while Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Wasim Jr and Usman Tariq were listed in the Diamond category.
The Gold category featured Khurram Shahzad, Haseebullah Khan, Khawaja Mohammad Nafay, Hassan Nawaz and Danish Aziz. Ali Majid was the sole player in the Silver category, while Mohammad Zeeshan and Shamyl Hussain were placed in the Emerging category.
From these options, the Gladiators retained Abrar Ahmed in the Platinum category, Usman Tariq in Diamond, Hassan Nawaz from Gold and Shamyl Hussain from the Emerging category while opting not to retain any player from the Silver category.
Likewise, Karachi Kings announced the retention of fast bowler Hasan Ali, all-rounder Khushdil Shah, pacer Abbas Afridi, and wicketkeeper-batsman Saad Baig.
The franchise released several high-profile players, including Australia’s David Warner, along with Aamer Jamal, Shan Masood, Irfan Niazi, and England’s James Vince.
Similarly, Islamabad United also confirmed their retentions for PSL 11, keeping captain Shadab Khan in the platinum category.
Fast bowler Salman Irshad was retained in the gold category, while United States wicketkeeper-batsman Andries Gous was kept in the silver category.
All released players will be included in the PSL auction pool.
The final list of retained players across franchises is expected to be confirmed later today, officials said.