Sharjeel Khan set to be part of PSL draft as five-year ban comes to end

He might not have been a natural fit at the beginning, but with time, Sharjeel Khan became one of Pakistan's best limited-overs cricketers during that time. His maiden ODI century against Ireland in which he reached his century in just 62 balls and an impressive 58 from 30 balls against England at Trent Bridge helped make him an overseas pick for Leicestershire in the 2017 season of Natwest Blast. 

However, he was banned in 2017 from all forms of cricket as a spot-fixing scandal marred PSL's second edition. Sharjeel and Khalid Latif, who were playing for Islamabad United, were charged with five major breaches of the PCB's anti-corruption code and found guilty on all five counts by a three-man tribunal. However, once half the suspension was waived, there were clear chances of Sharjeel Khan making a comeback this year, and make a comeback he did. Sharjeel has been given clearance by the board to resume playing club cricket.

“Sharjeel recently appeared in a written test conducted by the PCB’s Anti-Corruption unit and passed it successfully. He has now been told to travel to Bahawalpur, Sheikhupura and Karachi where he will give lectures to members of the junior teams taking part in the domestic youth events. In all probability, Sharjeel should be cleared to also feature in the players draft for the PSL,” one source in the board said, reported Sportstar.

The 29-year-old Southpaw had played one Test, 25 ODIs and 15 T20 internationals before he was banned from all forms of cricket for five years on August 30, 2017. He can now resume his Test career as he is set to be a part of the PSL draft.