“Afghanistan wicket-keeper batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz has announced his withdrawal from Season 11 of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), stating that following the World Cup, he intends to dedicate his time to a foundation established for welfare work in Afghanistan.”
“In a video released on his Instagram account on Saturday, Gurbaz mentioned that he would be unable to participate in this PSL season due to personal reasons.”
“It is worth noting that the Peshawar Zalmi franchise had directly signed Rahmanullah Gurbaz as an overseas player.”
“Under the new auction model, each franchise was permitted to directly sign one overseas player who was not part of PSL 10. This was intended to provide teams the opportunity to strengthen their squads and incorporate new international talent.”
Here is the translation of the text regarding the Peshawar Zalmi controversy into English:
In this regard, on February 5, Peshawar Zalmi shared a photo of Rahmanullah Gurbaz on their X account, writing: “We are proud to confirm the direct signing of Afghanistan’s star wicketkeeper-batter; he is an aggressive batsman, a lightning-fast wicketkeeper, and an exceptional fielder. We welcome him.”
Peshawar Zalmi owner Javed Afridi also expressed his joy over signing Rahmanullah Gurbaz and welcomed him in Pashto; however, following the reaction on social media, he deleted his post.
Peshawar Zalmi faced significant criticism for signing Rahmanullah Gurbaz. Social media users expressed their anger over making an Afghan cricketer part of the PSL, in the context of recent tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan.
The matter of Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s withdrawal from the PSL is also a topic of intense discussion on social media.
An X user named Ihtisham-ul-Haq wrote: “Peshawar Zalmi had indeed signed Rahmanullah Gurbaz, but the question was always whether he would receive an NOC (No Objection Certificate) from the Afghanistan Cricket Board. It appears that he did not receive it.”
User Farid Khan posted: “Peshawar Zalmi should never have signed Rahmanullah Gurbaz; in fact, no Afghan player should be part of the PSL.”
Jan Achakzai wrote: “He is grateful to Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi for refusing him a visa. There can be no compromise on Pakistan’s integrity and honor.”
Sports journalist Saleem Khaliq noted: “Afghan cricketer Rahmanullah Gurbaz has withdrawn from the PSL due to ‘personal reasons.'”
Sana Yousafzai wrote on X: “Happy to see that Gurbaz has withdrawn from the PSL. We should not take players rejected by the IPL who insult Pakistan into the PSL.”
Who is Rahmanullah Gurbaz?
The 24-year-old Rahmanullah Gurbaz is a right-handed opening batsman and wicketkeeper for the Afghanistan national team.
Gurbaz is considered one of Afghanistan’s most aggressive opening batsmen. He has previously been a part of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) representing franchises such as Multan Sultans and Islamabad United.
In the Indian Premier League (IPL), he has played for Kolkata Knight Riders. He has also represented the Punjab Kings and Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL.
He made his T20 international debut in 2019 and joined Afghanistan’s ODI squad in 2021.
Gurbaz has played 83 T20 internationals and 52 ODIs, scoring eight centuries in the ODI format. During the 2023 World Cup, he scored 280 runs in nine matches, which included two half-centuries.
