BIRMINGHAM: The Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2022 will feature a record number of English cricketers in its seventh season.
In this year’s PSL, a total of 23 players from England will compete, including some of the biggest stars who have excelled not only in international T20 events but also in the domestic “T20 Blast” and the first edition of the “The Hundred” tournaments. Many of these players have also appeared in previous PSL editions on a regular basis.
Jason Roy, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone, James Vince, Saqib Mahmood, Alex Hales, Phil Slat, Samit Patel, Lewis Gregory, Reece Topley, Joe Clark, and Harry Brooks will all play in this edition of the PSL.
This year’s event, which begins on January 27, will also feature Ben Duckett, Luke Wood, Dan Lawrence, Jordon Thompson, Tom Lommonby, David Willey Mathew Potts, Will Smeed, Pat Brown, Matt Parkinson, and Tom-Kohler Cadmore.
The tournament, which is currently considered one of the most important T20 cricket tournaments, would run a month. However, not all of the English players will play throughout the tournament, as some are filling in for fellow countrymen who will be unavailable for the first few matches due to England’s T20I series against the West Indies.
The Quetta Gladiators have the most English players in their squad, with six, while the Karachi Kings and Peshawar Zalmi each have five. Lahore Qalandars have signed four English cricketers, Islamabad United have signed two, while Multan Sultans have only signed one English player for this year’s competition.
The PSL 2022 has signed four players from Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire, and Lancashire, as well as three players from Somerset. In this year’s PSL, there are two players from Surrey, two from Sussex, and one player each from Durham, Essex, Worcestershire, and Hampshire counties.
Jason Roy, Liam Livingstone, Saqib Mahmood, James Vince, Chris Jordan, Phil Salt, Harry Brook, and Reece Topley will miss the first few games of the tournament due to their participation in the English T20I squad touring the West Indies.
The complete list of which English players will play for which PSL franchise this year can be found below.
Quetta Gladiators:
The Gladiators, who had only one English player in their team in the previous PSL season, have signed six English cricketers for this year’s competition.
In the platinum category, the Quetta Gladiators have chosen the dashing English opener Jason Roy. Roy, who is known for his flashy top-order batting style, has also represented Quetta Gladiators in the 2018 and 2020 tournaments, as well as Lahore Qalandars in the 2017 edition.
James Vince, another English opener, is also singing for Quetta in the Platinum category. Vince, a successful Hampshire player, lead “Southern Braves” to victory in “The Hundred’s” inaugural competition last year. In the third ODI of the series, he also hit a match-winning century against Pakistan at Edgbaston. James Vince formerly played for the Karachi Kings in 2016 and the Multan Sultans in 2020-2021.
Gladiators chose Nottinghamshire wicket-keeper batsman Ben Duckett and Lancashire left-arm fast Luke Wood for the silver category. Luke Wood has been appointed in place of Naveen ul Haq, who has chosen to play for the BPL. In the final few games of the PSL 7, James Vince and Jason Roy will be replaced by young Somerset opener Will Smeed and test bat Amna Dan Lawrence of Essex.
Karachi Kings:
Unlike last year, when the Karachi Kings only had one Englishman in their team, the Kings have chosen five English players for this year’s PSL, including bowler Chris Jordan, who has been kept in the Platinum category. Jordan, who formerly played for Peshawar Zalmi, has been a consistent performer in the PSL. Chris Jordan, who plays for Sussex in the English Premier League, has been England’s leading fast bowler in T20Is.
The Karachi Kings selected Lewis Gregory in the Diamond category. Gregory, who plays for Somerset, made his ODI debut against Pakistan in the summer of 2021, when the Pakistani team came to England. He was part of the English speed bowling attack alongside Saqib Mahmood.
Nottinghamshire wicketkeeper-batsman Joe Clark, who was selected by Kings in the Gold category, is also the tournament’s Brand Ambassador.
Karachi Kings have selected Yorkshire all-rounder Jordan Thomas in the additional players category. Kings have recruited Somerset’s Tom Lammonby to replace county colleague Tom Abell. Tom Abell, who played for Lahore Qalandars last year, was originally signed in the silver category by Kings for this edition, but he had to withdraw due to an injury he got while playing in the BBL for “Brisbane Heat.”
Peshawar Zalmi:
In this year’s PSL, the Zalmis will have five English players, including dashing batter Liam Livingstone, who was selected in the Platinum category. Livingstone also appeared in the 2019 and 2020 editions of the Karachi Kings and Peshawar Zalmi, respectively. He has been in outstanding form in both domestic and international T20 cricket over the last year or so.
Livingston made the fastest century by an Englishman in T20I cricket in 2021, scoring a century in just 42 deliveries against Pakistan at Trent Bridge, Nottingham. His ferocious performance continued well into “The Hundred,” where he was on a tear for the “Birmingham Phoenix.” He smashed 27 sixes in total, including ten in a single match, and finished with 348 runs. He also guided Phoenix to the championship game, but the Braves defeated him in the final. Livingstone can bowl leg-breaks and off-breaks and is an effective spinner.
Peshawar Zalmi have re-signed fast bowler Saqib Mahmood for the next season. The Gold category has been selected for the Birmingham-born British-Pakistani cricketer from Lancashire. Saqib, who played for Peshawar Zalmi this season, has also been designated their “Brand Ambassador.” When Saqib Mahmood led the English pace attack against visiting Pakistan in 2021, he dismissed captain Babar Azam twice in a three-match ODI series and was voted player of the series.
Peshawar Zalmi have kept Yorkshire wicket-keeper batsman Tom-Kohler Cadmore in the Silver category. In 2018, he played for Quetta Gladiators in the Pakistan Super League. Lancashire leg spinner Matt Parkinson and Worcestershire pacer Pat Brown were also signed by Zalmi. For the first few games, both will take the place of Liam Livingstone and Saqib Mahmood.
Lahore Qalandars:
For this year’s PSL, the Qalandars have recruited four English players, including Harry Brook in the Gold category. While still in school, the all-rounder from Yorkshire earned his first-class debut against Pakistan A in 2016. Brooks also captained England’s U19 team at the 2018 U19 World Cup. Durham all-rounder Matthew Potts will fill in for him in Qalandars’ squad during his absence for the first few games.
Welshman Phil Salt was also selected in the Gold category by the Lahore Qalandars. In the ODI series against Pakistan in 2021, Salt, who plays for Sussex in the county competition, made his international debut. Phil Salt previously played in the PSL for Lahore Qalandars in 2018. He was also a member of Islamabad United’s 2019-21 tournament team.
Lahore Qalandars have kept Nottinghamshire’s Samit Patel in the supplemental category for this season. Samit Patel has played in the Pakistan Super League on a regular basis. Samit was a member of Islamabad United’s squad for the 2018 and 2019 seasons before joining Lahore Qalandars for the 2020-21 season.
Islamabad United:
Islamabad United has recruited two English players, including Alex Hales in the Gold category, for this year’s Pakistan Super League. Alex Hales of Nottinghamshire was re-signed by Islamabad United in 2021 after previously appearing for United in 2018-19 and Karachi Kings in 2020. He’s also the team’s mentor.
Reece Topley, a left-arm seamer who was chosen in the silver category, is the other English player to play for United.
Multan Sultans:
Multan Sultan, the defending champion, have only signed one English cricket player for the PSL this year. In the extra players’ category, Yorkshire and England all-rounder David Willey was chosen. Former international umpire Peter Willey’s son, David Willey, is also an umpire.
On January 27, defending champions Multan Sultans will face previous champions Karachi Kings in the PSL7’s first match at Karachi’s National Stadium.
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, all matches will be held in Karachi and Lahore, with the NCOC allowing barely 25% of fans into the stadiums for the Karachi leg. The month-long tournament will feature 34 matches, with the final set to take place on February 27 at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.