Watson signs up for Pakistan Super League

Dawn Sport Published October 12, 2015

Twenty20 top gun Shane Watson has become the latest big name player to join the Pakistan Super League (PSL) and the Australian allrounder is being tipped as a 'hot pick' by chairman of the league Najam Sethi.

Watson, who has amassed 4107 run in 154 T20s, said he was looking forward to joining a host of international superstars for the February 4-24 league being staged in UAE.

“I am very excited to be involved in the inaugural PSL. There are a lot of world class players involved so I can’t wait to be a part of it,” Watson, a two-time World Cup winner, said in a statement.

According to the Pakistan Cricket Board, Watson, had now become the 152nd foreign player to join the PSL for the December draft.

“We are delighted to have Shane Watson on board and with Shane’s record in T20 cricket, he will definitely be a hot pick in the PSL draft,” said Sethi.

Players who have signed up for the PSL so far:

Shane Watson, Chris Gayle, Kevin Pietersen, Grant Elliot, Kieron Pollard, Ravi Bopara, Andre Russell, Luke Wright, Dwayne Bravo, TM Dilshan, Shakib al Hasan, James Anderson, Samuel Badree, Ian Bell, Darren Sammy, Tim Bresnan, Angelo Mathews, Sunil Narine, Lasith Malinga, Michael Carberry, Samit Patel, Fidel Edwards, Shaun Tait, Thisara Perera, Adil Rashid, Brendan Taylor, Kemar Roach, Chris Jordan, Tamim Iqbal, Jesse Ryder, Dwayne Smith,

Associate-member players who have signed up:

Shapoor Zadran, George Dockrell, Rizwan Cheema, Preston Mommsen, Timroy Allen

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sana-2

Oct 12, 2015 11:40pm

Good luck with Wahab and now learn his tactics of how he scared you :)

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Rick_james

Oct 12, 2015 11:41pm

Awesome news.

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Varun

Oct 12, 2015 11:53pm

Good Players:Check Buzz around the tournament:Check I hope it becomes a grand grand success. Although I hope they advise everyone to keep religion out of the ground.The habit of thanking almighty before,after,during everything.

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Khurram

Oct 13, 2015 12:04am

Good for Pakistan Cricket! A More good lot is coming soon...

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DifferentPerspective

Oct 13, 2015 12:06am

Welcome on board. Keenly waiting for the event especially now that its in UAE I would certainly go to as many matches as I can given that I am based in UAE.

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Riz

Oct 13, 2015 12:12am

Good news .... all the best to PSL another likeable thing is that league will be done in 20 days not like will go to 2 months like IPL.

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Jawwad

Oct 13, 2015 12:22am

Big big big signing. But I would have liked PCB extending invitation to players from Associate countries from Holland, Ireland and few others specifically Sikandar Raza, Craig Irvine, Cremer, Sean Williams.

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naseem

Oct 13, 2015 12:27am

Jesse ryder!

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Oct 13, 2015 12:31am

all aboard, now the indians will be left alone. role reversal.

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Sleepless in Sahiwal

Oct 13, 2015 12:50am

@sana-2 That was just one match.. We Pakistanis get sentimental over one performance, one speech, one appearance, one date, one slogan, one statement, one gesture. Shane Watson is a top class star and unlike Wahab has consistently performed in all three format of the games for several years now.

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Ahmed A.

Oct 13, 2015 12:54am

That's really a good news. It seems PSL is on course to becoming one of the major leagues. Of course far smaller than IPL or even Big Bash league, but still not bad for a start. Its success will enable PCB to be financially secure and our players will also get to play with the world class players and learn a few more tricks. Looks good.

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Salman

Oct 13, 2015 01:03am

This is good, this is exciting !!

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sam

Oct 13, 2015 01:03am

@bk really..dream on..ipl deal with millions of dollars and not with peanuts like psl and all current cricket players around the world..and ipl and psl is played at different dates..if the days clashed none would have signed for psl..also those who have signed for psl are mostly cricketers who are close to retirement age..

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Hasan

Oct 13, 2015 02:06am

Who will be providing security for these targets in Pakistan?

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Singh

Oct 13, 2015 02:40am

@bk You must be kidding, Comparing apples and oranges. IPL is in a complete different league.

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Sonny Afridi

Oct 13, 2015 03:01am

Pakistan league will prove to be a success I feel

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Pakistani

Oct 13, 2015 03:26am

I can't wait for the event to start in February. It is going to be a big thing.

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A Shah

Oct 13, 2015 03:26am

A retired wannabe?

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Fawad

Oct 13, 2015 03:57am

Hope BCCI opens up and let Indian players to join it too. I know IPL will never allow Pakistani players however PSL will be more universal.

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Nadeem

Oct 13, 2015 04:27am

Great news! Anxiously waiting for PSL :-)

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PrasadDeccani

Oct 13, 2015 04:49am

Good catch. He will do a lot of value addition to PSL.

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Ajit Singh

Oct 13, 2015 04:56am

Good.

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FAM

Oct 13, 2015 05:01am

@Hasan Umm, did you read the article? The games will be held in UAE.

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True Indian

Oct 13, 2015 05:02am

@bk everything has to come down to India ... Right?

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Oct 13, 2015 05:34am

wish to see some big names from South Africa, likes of Ab devlieir, Morkel, Amla, Imran Tahir...

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Nasreen

Oct 13, 2015 05:40am

Pakistan should start games other than cricket at national level like foot ball, done in 95 minutes; need a level ground, football and cotton dress, all available made in Pakistan; and many other games. it's shame that government both local and provincial cannot encourage other games played all around world, their vision and focus is very narrow.

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Ali Akhtar(Multan)

Oct 13, 2015 05:45am

We here in Multan and also in Mianwali are waiting for PSL to start. Each and every village and city of Pakistan is also waiting.

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Shahid Akbar, New York

Oct 13, 2015 06:11am

Cricket lovers have no faith in IPL.

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cricket lover

Oct 13, 2015 07:31am

@Hasan If India stays quiet and refrains from fabricating conspiracy against Pakistan, everything is fine.

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cricket lover

Oct 13, 2015 07:41am

Big names in PSL will bring a huge difference to Pakistan cricket. Players will have a chance to shine themselves by playing PSL. It is high time for Pakistan to promote cricket and spread love through PSL T20 format across the world. Great work by Najam Sethi and his team, sponsors, investors....Special thanks to all the players for joining PSL.

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Faraz

Oct 13, 2015 09:25am

@Singh you mean a completely different league of corruption and match fixing

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asgher

Oct 13, 2015 09:31am

awesome! News brings something new about PSL every day. Really thrilled to watch PSL.

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Ronny

Oct 13, 2015 09:57am

@bk It looks like players who are either retired or not getting chance in their national team are getting together in PSL..Good luck :)

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A K Ahmat

Oct 13, 2015 10:02am

From what the list of players to participate tells, 98% of them are all retired players who have quit Test Cricket, only playing T20s...no Steve Smith, No Mitch Starcc, No McCullum, no Boult, no De Villiers, No Steyn, no Morne Morkel, no Warner, no Johnson, and so many others ..PSL might turn out to be good, but will stand behind Australia BBL and South African Ram Slam which are far superior...and IPL which is the best of them all despite all its controversies...a league where all players, presently playing and few recently retired ones play...PSL is being played in UAE....that is why most of the foreign players are coming else many would have opted out..With the way situation is in Pakistan, it will be a long time before foreign teams begin to play in Pakistan....i can bet PSL will be ranked behind IPL, BBL and RAM SLAM...even after 10 years...

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Realist

Oct 13, 2015 10:11am

PSL or UAE-SL as it really is, wants Indians because it wants to sell more tickets and make more money. Thanks but not thanks, no helping you unless and until you dismantle terrorists who kill our people. The day you hang Masood Azhar and Hafeez Saeed is the day you really are serious about being a decent neighbor. Until then you are enemy waiting to stab us in the back.

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naqeeb

Oct 13, 2015 10:40am

Good job PCB. I think the new PCB regime is working better. Keep it up... Let's promote our beautiful game-the cricket

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Shahzad Ikhlaq

Oct 13, 2015 11:25am

@Ronny Ever heard of Brad Hogg?? Plays for IPL & doing great, Just saying...do not try and malign everything associated with Pakistan.

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Sudhir Neyalasinger

Oct 13, 2015 12:12pm

With the exception of Shane Watson and Chris Gayle, the rest are people who are past their prime. Why didn't PCB go for more players who are currently doing well for their countries?

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Hitesh

Oct 13, 2015 01:07pm

Watson is a very good player of T20. Being an all-rounder makes him a hot pick. There are couple of comments about Indian Players, however please note that BCCI has not allowed participation of Indian players in any of the T20 Leagues other than IPL. So, if Indian players are not playing in PSL, thats not because of India-Pakistan rivalry. All the best to PSL and Pakistan!!

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Josh

Oct 13, 2015 01:18pm

Good news for Pakistan. I hope the tournament succeeds. It appears to me, sitting across the border, that things are looking up for Pakistan. Terrorism contained to a great extent, Solar Parks, CPEC etc are going to help revive the country. Ultimately, it is more important to provide people with food, shelter and education than anything else. May the force be with you.

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rao

Oct 13, 2015 02:39pm

keep it up....well done boys

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ali

Oct 13, 2015 05:17pm

@Singh I am sure it is. But I hope India say out of it. We know what they did to get all the world cup 2011 matches.

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ali

Oct 13, 2015 05:21pm

@Ronny haha. Gayle, bravo, Sammy, Peterson and many more, they still play in IPL. You dope. Look what IPL allow to play

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The Right Left

Oct 13, 2015 05:31pm

@Josh Thank you Sir ! Wish there are more like you on either side of the border !

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Azhar Hussain

Oct 13, 2015 05:38pm

@Varun Thanking the almighty is our belief, you go and drool over those scantily clad cheer women which is your culture.

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A common Pakistani

Oct 13, 2015 05:40pm

The cricketers seem to have met a windfall. They go wherever the money is

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A common Pakistani

Oct 13, 2015 05:41pm

Anyway, I hope it will give an initiative to restart more cricket tournaments by International teams at Pakistani home grounds.

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A K Ahmat

Oct 13, 2015 06:18pm

The list of foreign players barring few who play Test Cricket....is not all that impressive...they are all retired players who play only T20s . PSL can try what it wants, but it cannot beat even Australia BBL and South Africa Ram Slam which are far more professional with lots of attractions and color and of course many prominent players play who are currently playing....IPL despite all its controversies remains the top most league and none can match it. It will only get better in coming days with the weeding out of negetive elements and a new forthright BCCI management in place. After IPL, comes BBL and RAM SLAM...PSL is on the same plane as Bangladesh league which also attracts the same kind of players, 97% of whom are retired or not playing intl cricket. Even if PSL goes to Pakistan in coming years which is anyway far off off it cannot beat BBL and Ram Slam, forget let alone IPL.

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A common Pakistani

Oct 13, 2015 06:34pm

@A K Ahmat Sir, the fact is that IPL and all of its relatives are just a recipe of disaster for the game Cricket itself. Cricket has become a commercial business. This issue does not deserve your attention, kindly reserve all the Pakistan bashing and babbling on Kashmir problem.

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lafanga

Oct 13, 2015 07:57pm

If you organize it well and have strong backers with money, they will all slowly sign up. Learn from the early goings of IPL BUT don't behave like IPL i.e. keep it corruption free.

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Dinesh

Oct 13, 2015 08:54pm

Will they be able to pay the players at the end of the tournament? Will foreign countries show the matches? Any sponsors yet?

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Jag

Oct 13, 2015 11:24pm

@bk ....Indians don't want to play...what you is peanuts compare to what they get in IPL

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Ali - Karachi

Oct 14, 2015 06:10am

We want to see Kholi and Sharma against Wahab. Come on PCB, extend the invitation...

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harsha subbaiah

Oct 14, 2015 09:34am

@Riz its good that you happy about PSL making things better for y'all. But why does this desease of y'all comparing everything with India not go. IPL has 8 teams y'all got 5 so things will have to evolve. Best is to concentrate on your stuff and get the uncalled for comparison outta your heads

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harsha subbaiah

Oct 14, 2015 09:43am

@Azhar Hussain there would be if th comparison and jingoistic sentiments reduce from either side, a bit more on one end though. Nevertheless. A small Ray of hope should be appriciated. We do. So should y'all. Cheers

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Mehrooz

Oct 14, 2015 10:03am

I think PCB should think to invite indian cricketers so the leagues would be more interesting . i am so happy that most of the famous cricketers joined the league.

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Saad(DXB)

Oct 14, 2015 10:11am

@Jag Yeah.. and this is why they are more interested in playing in IPL and making money there rather than performing on the international stage

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