ISLAMABAD – West Indies T20 star trio of Andre Russell, Dwayne Smith andAndre Fletcher, in-form England top-order batsman James Vince, and SouthAfrica’s duo of Hardus Viljeon and David Wise have been included at theReplacement Player Draft of the PSL 4.
Russell, the champion all-rounder, was picked by Multan Sultans as areplacement for an injured Australia batsman Steve Smith. Russell hadplayed for Islamabad United in 2018 and will be available for the firstseven matches in the UAE before returning to the Caribbean.
“HBL PSL is a quality tournament and I look forward to reuniting with someof the top international cricketers in 2019,” said Russell.
“Multan Sultans have picked a very balanced squad this year and I am gladthat I will have a chance to share the dressing room with Pakistanistalwarts Shoaib Malik and Shahid Afridi,” he added.
The Sultans also scooped England batsman James Vince to replace his fellowcountryman Joe Denly, who will be on national duty in the West Indies.Vince has amassed 4,166 runs in 161 T20 matches at an average of 29.75. Hewill look to replicate the form that saw him score two back-to-backhalf-centuries for Sydney Sixers in the Big Bash League in Australia.
“We had to deal with the double blow of losing out on Steve Smith and JoeDenly, but we are delighted that we have been able to bring in AndreRussell and James Vince,” said Multan Sultans captain Shoaib Malik.
“Russell is one of the best T20 cricketers in the world and we areconfident that he will bring his match-winning instinct to our dressingroom this season,” he said adding “Vince is a player we havekept our eyes on for a while now. We have picked him based on hisconsistent performances and we are very excited to see what he can do forMultan Sultans.”
Quetta Gladiators have snapped up veteran West Indies all-rounder DwayneSmith as cover for Dwayne Bravo from 14 to 27 February. Smith has playedfor Islamabad United and Peshawar Zalmi in the previous seasons.
“Smith brings a wealth of experience with him and will be extremelyvaluable for us in the top-order for the UAE-leg of HBL PSL 2019,” saidQuetta Gladiators coach Moin Khan.
Lahore Qalandars have opted for South Africa’s duo of Hardus Viljoen andDavid Wiese as cover for Corey Anderson and Carlos Brathwaite. Andersonwill arrive late due to his domestic commitments, while Brathwaite isexpected to be a part of the squad for the T20 series against England. Inaddition to the two, AB de Villiers is also available until 10 March.
West Indies batsman Andre Fletcher has returned to Peshawar Zalmi as areplacement for Waqar Salamkheil, who has withdrawn due to his Afghanistancommitments.
Peshawar Zalmi and Multan Sultans are eligible to name partial replacementsfor Chris Jordan and Nicholas Pooran, respectively.
The two players are expected to be involved in the T20 series betweenEngland and West Indies in March.
Earlier, in a bid to encourage local talent, four of the six teams alsonamed their local players to their squads. These are: Lahore Qalandars –Saad Ali (middle-order batsman), Multan Sultans – HammadAzam (all-rounder), Quetta Gladiators – Mohammad Irfan Jr (fast bowler),Karachi Kings – Umer Khan (left-arm spinner).