Naseem Shah, Faheem Ashraf fetch record fees in PSL’s first-ever auction

Ravi Singh

3 hours ago

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Naseem Shah and Faheem Ashraf were the big winners at the PSL’s first-ever auction, fetching the highest prices. For PKR 86.5 million, Naseem moved from Islamabad United across town to the new team set up in Islamabad’s twin city, Rawalpindi, while Faheem returned to Islamabad United for PKR 85 million.

With the number of retentions each team was allowed had been slashed from eight to four, there was a clear pattern of players being snapped up by their former sides as franchises looked to consolidate their squads. Karachi Kings captain in 2025, David Warner, returned to the franchise for PKR 79 million, while Lahore Qalandars were keen to secure the services of Haris Rauf again, picking him up for PKR 76 million. They paid even more to retain Fakhar Zaman, shelling out PKR 79.5 million.

Rilee Rossouw was another player heading back to the side where he first made his name in the PSL. Quetta Gladiators, whom he helped win their only title in 2022, bought the South African for PKR 55 million, while Hasan Ali returned to Karachi for PKR 47.6 million.

Two New Zealanders fetched high prices at the auction. Daryl Mitchell sparked a fierce bidding war that ended with Rawalpindi paying PKR 80.5 million for him, while Islamabad United fended off similar interest to sign Mark Chapman for PKR 70 million. Among the Australians, Adam Zampa was signed by Karachi for PKR 45 million, while 41-year-old Peter Siddle was rewarded for his recent BBL form with a PKR 25 million deal.

Hyderabad Houston Kingsmen had made a direct signing in Marnus Labuschagne and retained Saim Ayub. They were more restrained at the auction but were keen to consolidate their brand image as a Pakistan-American franchise, picking up Hammad Azam and Shayan Jahangir, two Pakistan-born players who now represent USA. Lahore landed Ubaid Shah, Naseem’s youngest brother, while Hunain Shah, who initially went unsold, eventually joined Hyderabad Kingsmen.

The auction, which ran for nearly eight hours, saw limited interest in domestic Pakistani players, but there was one notable exception. Sameer Minhas, who starred in Pakistan’s Under-19 Asia Cup win in December, prompted a bidding battle before Islamabad paid PKR 19 million for him. Meanwhile, Shahnawaz Dahani, who burst into the limelight through the PSL, found no takers.

Team squads

Hyderabad Houston Kings: Marnus Labuschagne, Saim Ayub, Akif Javed, Maaz Sadaqat, Usman Khan, Mohammad Ali, Kusal Perera, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Hassan Khan, Shayan Jahangir, Ottniel Baartman, Hammad Azam, Riley Meredith, Sharjeel Khan, Asif Mehmood, Hunain Shah, Rizwan Mehmood, Saad Ali, Tayyab Arif

Islamabad United: Devon Conway, Shadab Khan, Salman Irshad, Andries Gous, Faheem Ashraf, Mehran Mumtaz, Max Bryant, Mark Chapman, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Mir Hamza Sajjad, Sameen Gul, Sameer Minhas, Shamar Joseph, Imad Wasim, Richard Gleeson, Haider Ali, Mohammad Hasnain, Dipendra Singh Airee

Karachi Kings: Moeen Ali, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Khushdil Shah, Saad Baig, David Warner, Azam Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Shahid Aziz, Mir Hamza, Adam Zampa, Hamza Sohail, Aqib Ilyas, Khuzaima Bin Tanveer, Johnson Charles, Muhammad Waseem, Ihsanullah, Rizwanullah

Lahore Qalandars: Mustafizur Rahman, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Abdullah Shafique, Sikandar Raza, Mohammad Naeem, Haris Rauf, Usama Mir, Fakhar Zaman, Ubaid Shah, Mohammad Farooq, Dasun Shanaka, Parvez Hussain Emon, Asif Ali, Hussain Talat, Tayyab Tahir, Gudakesh Motie

Rawalpindi: Mohammad Rizwan, Sam Billings, Zaman Khan, Yasir Khan, Naseem Shah, Rishad Hossain, Daryl Mitchell, Mohammad Amir, Abdullah Fazal, Amad Butt, Dian Forrestor, Laurie Evans, Asif Afridi, Kamran Ghulam, Fawad Ali, Mohammad Amir Khan, Shahzaib Khan

Peshawar Zalmi: Aaron Hardie, Babar Azam, Sufyan Moqim, Abdul Samad, Ali Raza, Aamir Jamal, Khuram Shahzad, Mohammad Haris, Khalid Usman, Abdul Subhan, James Vince, Michael Bracewell, Kusal Mendis, Iftikhar Ahmed, Nahid Rana, Mirza Tahir Baig, Kashif Ali

Quetta Gladiators: Spencer Johnson, Abrar Ahmed, Usman Tariq, Hasan Nawaz, Shamyl Hussain, Rilee Rossouw, Faisal Akram, Arafat Minhas, Jahandad Khan, Khawaja Mohammad Nafay, Wasim Akram Jnr, Khan Zaib, Bismillah Khan, Saqib Khan, Brett Hampton, Sam Harper, Bevon Jacobs, Saud Shakeel, Ben McDermott, Tom Curran

Sialkot Stallionz: Steve Smith, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Ahmed Daniyal, Saad Masood, Jahanzaib Sultan, Sahibzada Farhan, Ashton Turner, Peter Siddle, Tabraiz Shamsi, Lachlan Shaw, Delano Potgieter, Josh Phillippe, Shan Masood, Momin Qamar, Muhammad Awais Zafar

Danyal Rasool is ESPNcricinfo’s Pakistan correspondent. @Danny61000

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