Hobart Hurricanes picked three Pakistani players in the first-ever BBL Overseas Player Draft for the 12th edition of the tournament.
The Hurricanes, who have former Australian captain Ricky Ponting as their head of strategy, picked the Islamabad United trio of Shadab Khan, Asif Ali, and Faheem Ashraf.
Darren Berry’s presence in the Hurricanes coaching stuff seems to be the key in the signing of the trio, the former South Australia and Adelaide Strikers coach has worked with Islamabad United in the Pakistan Super League.
The Hurricanes went for Shadab Khan as their platinum pick and also roped in all-rounders Asif Ali and Faheem Ashraf.
Commenting on Shadab Khan, Ponting said “He is a high-class international leg spinner, very handy with the bat as well, and he is a gun in the field.”
“We think we are bringing in a three-dimensional cricketer into our squad. It looks like he has got reasonable availability,” he added. He mentioned that the Pakistani all-rounder will likely miss just one week of the tournament and will be available for the finals as well if the Hurricanes make it to the latter stages of the tournament.
Ponting described Asif Ali as a powerful middle-order player and said the Hurricanes went for him as they wanted to strengthen their power in the latter overs of matches. Commenting on Faheem Ashraf’s pick, Ponting once again highlighted his all-around ability and his full-time availability for the tournament.
The tournament will start on December 13 with Sydney Thunders taking on Melbourne Stars in the opening match of the event.