Fresh from a stupendous outing in the 2016 edition of the Indian Premier League, Kolkata Knight Riders all-rounder Yusuf Pathan has signed up for the Dhaka Premier League. The 33-year-old hard-hitting batsman will be turning out for Abahani Limited, who have already added a number of Indian recruits in their ranks, this season.
Pathan, who is usually known for his aggressive strokeplay, showed immense maturity during the just-concluded IPL season, shouldering the middle order responsibilities for KKR, thus helping them reach the playoff stage for only the fourth time in nine attempts. In fact, Pathan’s unbeaten 52 off 34 balls against eventual champions Sunrisers Hyderabad in KKR’s final league game was instrumental in helping his side progress to the knockout stage.
KKR’s season ended with a loss against the same opposition in the Eliminator stage with Pathan emerging as the side’s top performer overall, scoring 361 runs in 15 matches at a strike-rate of just below 146. Even more astounding was his batting average of 72.20 which was second only to Virat Kohli in IPL 2016.
Overlooked for Zim tour
Despite these splendid numbers, Pathan was overlooked for India’s upcoming tour of Zimbabwe, where they are scheduled to play three ODIs and three T20Is in Harare between June 11 and 22. While veterans like Ashish Nehra and Yuvraj Singh made a comeback to the national side over the past year or so after a lengthy absence, the national selectors are planning for the future with as many as five uncapped players picked for the African tour.
With age not on his side, it seems Pathan is looking to make the most of his good run of form in a format which is tailor-made for him. He will be joining former KKR teammate Manoj Tiwary and former Kings XI Punjab wicketkeeper-batsman Uday Kaul as players to have featured in the Abahani line-up, though it remains to be seen how many matches he will get to play as DPL rules allow only one foreign player to be included in the playing XI.
The recent move by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to allow its players to feature in List A matches outside India has led to a number of domestic cricketers move across the border. While Jatin Saxena and Jalaj Saxena are playing for Kalabagan Cricket Academy and Legends of Rupganj respectively, Delhi all-rounder Milind Kumar features for Brothers Union.
Haryana’s Sachin Rana has turned out in two matches for Prime Bank Cricket Club with Manvinder Bisla also turning out for Abahani before he was replaced by Tiwary. Some of the other Indians who have played in the Dhaka League’s history are Raman Lamba, Yuvraj Singh, Ajay Jadeja, Arun Lal, Ashok Malhotra, Iqbal Abdulla, Rajat Bhatia, Chetan Sharma, Sanjeev Sharma, Rohan Gavaskar, Amol Muzumdar and Aakash Chopra.
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