Mickey Arthur: “What was disappointing to see for me in this player draft was that guys like Abdullah Shafique were not picked up by any franchise”
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
Former Pakistan head coach Mickey Arthur admitted that he was shocked to see batsman Abdullah Shafique go undrafted during the recent Pakistan Super League (PSL) draft.
Shafique has represented Pakistan in three T20 Internationals and made a top score of 41 not out on debut against Zimbabwe in November.
His call-up to the national team stemmed from his outstanding performance in last year’s National T20 Cup, where he accumulated 358 runs in 10 matches for Central Punjab, which included a century on debut and two fifties, at an average of 44.75 and a strike-rate of 133.08.
Despite his impressive performances, he didn’t attract any interest from any of the franchises for PSL 6.
“What was disappointing to see for me in this player draft was that guys like Abdullah Shafique were not picked up by any franchise,” Arthur, who now coaches Sri Lanka, told PakPassion. “If you’re playing in the Pakistan national team as was Abdullah during the tour of New Zealand, one expects him to have been playing in the PSL, which to me is almost obligatory. This whole situation is fairly disappointing, as is probably for the players too.”
PSL 6 will be held from February 20 to March 22.