PSL franchises announce retained players for season 10

The six franchises of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) unveiled their player retentions on Saturday, ahead of the Player Draft for PSL season 10, scheduled for January 11.  

Each team was permitted to retain a maximum of eight players from their previous squads. While Islamabad United, Quetta Gladiators, and Lahore Qalandars used their full quota, Karachi Kings, Multan Sultans, and Peshawar Zalmi opted to retain seven players each.  

Islamabad United, the defending champions and three-time PSL winners, retained captain Shadab Khan and fast bowler Naseem Shah in the Platinum category. Imad Wasim, also serving as the team mentor, and Azam Khan were retained in Diamond. Salman Ali Agha, named the team’s brand ambassador, and Haider Ali were placed in the Gold category. Colin Munro and Rumman Raees completed the squad's retentions in the Silver category.  

Multan Sultans, the PSL 2021 champions and runners-up last season, retained captain Mohammad Rizwan and spinner Usama Mir in Platinum. David Willey, serving as team mentor, Iftikhar Ahmed, named the brand ambassador, and Usman Khan were placed in Diamond. Chris Jordan was retained in Gold, while spinner Faisal Akram was selected in Silver.  

Peshawar Zalmi, led by PSL's all-time leading run-scorer Babar Azam, retained him and dynamic batter Saim Ayub in Platinum. Wicketkeeper Mohammad Haris remained in Diamond, while silver-category retentions included spinners Arif Yaqoob, Mehran Mumtaz, and Sufyan Moqim, who was also named the team’s brand ambassador. Emerging fast bowler Ali Raza, known for his recent ten-wicket haul in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy final, was retained in the Emerging category.  

Quetta Gladiators, the 2019 champions, retained star batter Rilee Rossouw, spinner Abrar Ahmed, and pacer Mohammad Amir in Diamond, with Amir also serving as team mentor. Saud Shakeel, who was named the team's brand ambassador, joined Akeal Hosein and Mohammad Wasim Jnr in the Gold category. Khawaja Mohammad Nafay and spinner Usman Tariq were retained in the Silver category.  

Karachi Kings, the PSL 2020 winners, retained pacer Hasan Ali and James Vince in Diamond, while skipper Shan Masood and emerging all-rounder Mohammad Irfan Khan were kept in Gold. Arafat Minhas, named the brand ambassador, spinner Zahid Mehmood, and Tim Seifert were selected in Silver.  

Lahore Qalandars, the two-time PSL champions, retained Shaheen Shah Afridi and Fakhar Zaman in Platinum. Haris Rauf, who is also the team’s brand ambassador, and Sikandar Raza were retained in Diamond. Abdullah Shafique, Jahandad Khan, and Zaman Khan were placed in Gold, while experienced all-rounder David Wiese remained in Silver.  

The Player Draft for PSL 10 is expected to be highly competitive, with Lahore Qalandars having the first Platinum pick, followed by Islamabad United and Quetta Gladiators in subsequent rounds.