Pakistani veteran cricketer Shoaib Malik is expected to rejoin Fortune Barishal’s team on February 2 after leaving the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) last week. The 42-year-old is scheduled to play in the team’s final match against Khulna Tigers on February 3 in Sylhet.
Ahmed Shehzad has also joined Fortune Barishal’s Sylhet squad for the 2024 season of Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). He came as a replacement for Shoaib Malik, who left the team midway through the season.
Shoaib Malik returned to Dubai after playing just three games for the team, citing personal reasons. The Pakistan veteran did not perform well in this year’s BPL, scoring only 17, 5 and 7 runs in three matches and taking just one wicket. His sudden departure from the team led to speculation that his contract had been terminated due to match-fixing allegations.
Initially, officials said these allegations led to the termination of the player’s contract with the team. However, franchise owner Mizanur Rahman clarified the situation on social media and categorically denied all spot-fixing allegations against the player.
Earlier, Shoaib Malik had issued an official statement explaining the decision behind his withdrawal from the Bangladesh Premier League, saying that he had been making future plans with Fortune Barishal.
“I would like to address and refute the recent rumors circulating about my status as a player at Fortune Barishal. We made plans together. I had to leave Bangladesh for a pre-scheduled media appearance in Dubai.”
The Pakistan all-rounder conceded 18 runs in the fourth over of the innings with a no-ball and subsequent free batting. Unfortunately, Fortune lost the match to Barishal as he fell short of the 188-run mark with his opponents leaving him with 2 overs and 8 wickets.
After this incident, there was a lot of discussion about match-fixing allegations, including Shoaib Malik’s off-ball disaster against Khulna Tigers.
Shoaib Malik has been busy on social media for the past two weeks. He has officially announced his divorce from Indian tennis star Sania Mirza, bringing an end to his second marriage. Soon after, 41-year-old Malik married his 30-year-old Pakistani actress Sana Javed.
Fortune Barishal’s next match is scheduled to be against Khulna Tigers on February 3. The team currently sits in fifth place in his table on points and has won two of his five matches so far.
