Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan has said that he thoroughly enjoys playing for Lahore Qalandars in the Pakistan Super League (PSL).
While speaking to Geo News in an exclusive interview, Rashid highlighted his bond with the teammates and the management.
“I have a special bond with Shaheen [Afridi], Haris [Rauf] and Fakhar [Zaman]. The love and affection shown by Sameen [Rana] bhai, Aaqib [Javed] bhai and everyone else here, over the past couple of years, makes me feel like that I have been playing for Lahore for the past 10 years,” said Rashid.
“This bond also helps us perform better on the field,” he added.
The talented leg-spinner also spoke about the quality of cricket in PSL as compared to other T20 leagues in the world.
“There is not much of a difference [between PSL and other leagues in the world]. When we will move to cities like Peshawar and Quetta and play in front of packed stadiums, the league will get even better. It also tests the player and their skills since sometimes the crowd will be against you and sometimes in your favour,” he said.
“The bowlers here are definitely quick and if the batter are not prepared they will struggle. It’s a pretty hard task to be here and play bowlers at 140kph plus,” he added.
Rashid also spoke about bowling to Babar Azam, who is among the best batters in the world, during the ongoing PSL 8.
“It will be a good contest like before. You always enjoy bowling to a top player since you will try to give him tough time and he will also do the same, which is the beauty of this contest. No doubt, he is one of the best batters in all formats of the game,” he said. “I will try to keep it simple and focus on my line and length.”
Lahore Qalandars Squad
Shaheen Shah Afridi (c), Fakhar Zaman, Rashid Khan, David Wiese, Hussain Talat, Haris Rauf, Abdullah Shafique, Liam Dawson, Sikandar Raza, Ahmad Daniyal, Dilbar Hussain, Harry Brook, Kamran Ghulam, Mirza Tahir Baig, Shawaiz Irfan, Zaman Khan, Jalat Khan, Jordan Cox (wk), Ahsan Bhatti, Sam Billings (wk), Shane Dadswell, Shai Hope
Lahore’s remaining fixtures
26 Feb - Lahore Qalandars v Peshawar Zalmi, Gaddafi Stadium
27 Feb - Lahore Qalandars v Islamabad United, Gaddafi Stadium
2 Mar - Lahore Qalandars v Quetta Gladiators, Gaddafi Stadium
4 Mar - Lahore Qalandars v Multan Sultans, Gaddafi Stadium
7 Mar - Peshawar Zalmi v Lahore Qalandars, Pindi Cricket Stadium
9 Mar - Islamabad United v Lahore Qalandars, Pindi Cricket Stadium
12 Mar - Lahore Qalandars v Karachi Kings, Gaddafi Stadium
Sohail Imran Sohail Imran is a senior reporter for Geo News.