Pakistan players ready to leave BBL for Sri Lanka series

Pakistan’s leading players currently featuring in Australia’s Big Bash League have indicated they would be willing to return home for national duty if called up, a development that highlights the uncertainty surrounding selection in Pakistan cricket. Senior players including Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Hasan Ali and Haris Rauf are all involved in the Big Bash but are expected to miss Pakistan’s T20 series in Sri Lanka next month because of their contractual commitments in Australia.

Cricket Australia has already confirmed it received assurances from the Pakistan Cricket Board that the players would be available for the full duration of the Big Bash, which runs until January 24.

However, following comments from CA chief executive Todd Greenberg, a PCB source revealed that the players had approached the board to say they would return for the Sri Lanka series, scheduled from January 5 to 12, if formally recalled. According to the source, the players cannot unilaterally alter or cancel their Big Bash contracts without risking financial loss or penalties. As a result, they are seeking PCB intervention should the board want them available for the Sri Lanka tour.

The source said the situation is complicated by concerns over Pakistan’s volatile selection culture, with players anxious that selectors may experiment with new combinations in Sri Lanka — a key venue as Pakistan are due to play all their T20 World Cup matches there in February and March. Adding to the uncertainty is the fact that, apart from Shadab Khan, the other senior players — including Babar, Rizwan and Shaheen — have yet to make a strong impact in the Big Bash.

The fear, the source added, is that missing the Sri Lanka series could leave them on the fringes of selection ahead of the World Cup. The players are therefore hoping the PCB will step in to prevent any breach-of-contract issues, though it remains unclear whether the board will do so, given that Cricket Australia signed the Pakistani players on the condition that their Big Bash commitments would be fully honoured.