LAHORE: The oath-taking ceremony of cricketer Wahab Riaz, who was recently named as sports minister in the Punjab government's caretaker cabinet, has been postponed.
The decision was taken because the Peshawar Zalmi pacer wants to take part in the upcoming season eight of Pakistan Super League (PSL).
The chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Management Committee, Najam Sethi, had requested the caretaker chief minister of Punjab, Mohsin Naqvi, to postpone the ceremony until the conclusion of the PSL. This will allow the pacer to feature in the tournament without the additional burden of ministerial responsibility.
“Wahab Riaz will play complete PSL now. He will take the oath after the end of PSL,” a PCB spokesperson said.
It must be noted that Riaz is the highest wicket-taker in PSL history with 103 wickets in 77 matches at an economy rate of 7.59.
The opening ceremony of PSL 8 will be held in Multan on February 13 prior to the tournament opener between 2021 winners Multan Sultans and defending champions Lahore Qalandars; meanwhile the closing ceremony and final will be played on March 19 in Lahore, which will also host play-offs.
Lahore Qalandars will attempt to become the first side to win back-to-back titles; meanwhile Islamabad United will aim to become the most successful side by lifting the trophy thrice.
Rawalpindi will stage 11 fixtures, Karachi and Lahore will host nine matches each, whereas Multan will have five home games.
Peshawar Zalmi Squad
Babar Azam, Sherfane Rutherford, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Haris, Aamir Jamal, Salman Irshad, Tom-Kohler Cadmore, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Rovman Powell, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Danish Aziz, Arshad Iqbal, Saim Ayub, Usman Qadir, Suifyan Muqeem, Haseeb Ullah, Jimmy Neesham, Khurram Shahzad, Haris Sohail, Richard Gleeson (partial replacement for Rovman Powell), Peter Hatzoglou (partial replacement for Mujeeb ur Rahman)
Peshawar Zalmi Fixtures
14th Feb - Peshawar Zalmi vs Karachi Kings, National Bank Cricket Arena
17th Feb - Peshawar Zalmi vs Multan Sultans, Multan Cricket Stadium
20th Feb - Peshawar Zalmi vs Quetta Gladiators, National Bank Cricket Arena
23rd Feb - Peshawar Zalmi vs Islamabad United, National Bank Cricket Arena
26th Feb - Peshawar Zalmi vs Lahore Qalandars, Gaddafi Stadium
1st Mar - Peshawar Zalmi vs Karachi Kings, Pindi Cricket Stadium
7th Mar - Peshawar Zalmi vs Lahore Qalandars, Pindi Cricket Stadium
8th Mar - Peshawar Zalmi vs Quetta Gladiators, Pindi Cricket Stadium
10th Mar - Peshawar Zalmi vs Multan Sultans, Pindi Cricket Stadium
12th Mar - Peshawar Zalmi vs Islamabad United, Pindi Cricket Stadium
Sohail Imran Sohail Imran is a senior reporter for Geo News.