Left-handed opener Imam-ul-Haq joined his national captain Babar Azam and teammates in the Colombo Strikers’ squad for the upcoming edition of the Lanka Premier League (LPL). Imam-ul-Haq is set to make his first-ever foreign T20 franchise league appearance after Colombo Strikers signed the opener as a replacement for Ireland’s Lorcan Tucker. Strikers, led by Babar Azam, now feature five Pakistani cricketers in their set of overseas players besides the Pakistan captain. Imam-ul-Haq will join up with his Pakistan teammates Wahab Riaz, Naseem Shah, Iftikhar Ahmed and Mohammad Nawaz. Before his inclusion in the Colombo Strikers’ squad for the upcoming edition of the LPL, Imam-ul-Haq had only featured in the Pakistan Super League (PSL). The left-handed batter has featured in 22 PSL fixtures and has 542 runs under his belt with the help of five half-centuries.

 It is pertinent to mention that the fourth edition of LPL, the T20 franchise cricket tournament in Sri Lanka, is scheduled to be played between five teams, from July 31 to August 22. A total of 13 Pakistan cricketers were roped in for the upcoming fourth edition of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) in the player auction which took place last month. Notably, before the auction took place, some of Pakistan’s notable cricketers had already found new homes in the LPL. Leading the charge is the formidable Pakistan captain, Babar Azam, who will be representing the Colombo Strikers. Joining Babar in the LPL was the young and fiery fast bowler, Naseem Shah, who had also been acquired by the Colombo franchise. Another key addition to the LPL is the explosive batsman, Fakhar Zaman, who will be donning the colours of the B-Love Kandy team.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-INP