Imad Wasim came to life in the second half of Pakistan Super League (PSL) 9 as he guided Islamabad United to the honor of becoming three-time PSL winners.
United became the first PSL franchise to win Pakistan’s premier T20 league a record third time. Captained by Shadab Khan, the team engulfed in data science to select the team prior to the event.
Imad’s fate changed in Rawalpindi, when he played a 13-ball 30 runs cameo while his team was chasing 229 against Multan Sultans. Not only he won his team the match, his batting form came back as well.
The left-arm orthodox bowled a lethal spell, 4-0-12-3, against Quetta Gladiators in Eliminator 1 which resulted in IU qualifying for the (potential) semi-final of PSL 9.
In Eliminator 2, the Wales-born cricketer top-scored with 59*, at a healthy strike-rate of 148, as IU eliminated Peshawar Zalmi and qualified for the Final.
Imad became the first bowler to take a 5-wicket-haul in a PSL final, 4-0-23-5, as his bowling skills resulted in Multan Sultans losing the plot.
Imad Wasim in PSL 9
| Innings | Runs | Average | Strike Rate | Highest Score | 6s | Wickets | Bowling Average | Economy | Best Bowling In An Innings |
| 9 | 126 | 21.00 | 128.57 | 59* | 1 | 12 | 20.91 | 6.60 | 5/23 |
A question for the future is, will Imad be brought back to the national white-ball side?
Pakistan’s near-future challenge is the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup in West Indies and USA. Imad has the experience of playing Caribbean Premier League since 2016; he has been consistently playing for Jamaica Tallawahs.
Imad Wasim’s Statistics In CPL
| Matches | Runs | Average | Strike Rate | Highest Score | 6s | Wickets | Bowling Average | Economy | Best Bowling In An Innings |
| 54 | 625 | 24.03 | 126.51 | 63 | 27 | 61 | 18.88 | 6.20 | 3/14 |
Pakistan lost their most-recent T20I series against New Zealand, 1-4, where the preferred left-arm all-rounder was Mohammad Nawaz. The leftie batted and bowled decently in a couple of matches, but he wasn’t consistent throughout the series.
Imad took an early retirement from international cricket, which according to him came due to mental stress. Will the national team selectors prefer Imad over Nawaz, or will they go for a youngster such as Mehran Mumtaz.
What do you think, should Imad be called back to the national T20 squad?
