Prior to the Hundred Draft 2023, which took place on March 23, each team announced their retentions for this summer’s tournament including Shadab Khan who was retained by the Birmingham Phoenix.
Shadab, who was retained in the £100k category, was somewhat of a suspire name on this list, not because of any concerns over his quality but rather that he is yet to make his debut for the team. He was bought by Birmingham Phoenix last year but was unable to feature in a single match in the tournament.
The rules of the competition state that men’s teams can retain up to ten players from last year’s squad. As Shadab was in the Birmingham Phoenix squad last year, he was eligible to be retained for the upcoming season despite being yet to make his debut for the Birmingham based franchise.
The all-rounder is an exciting retention for the Phoenix as he provides leg spin and powerful hitting. The Pakistan international has 2,235 T20 runs including seven fifties, with a strike rate of 136.44 as well as 270 wickets in the format. He was part of the Pakistan side that made a sensational comeback to reach the final of last year’s T20 World Cup, scoring a half-century against South Africa to keep Pakistan in the tournament.
He is one of four Pakistan players set to feature this year’s Hundred, with fast bowlers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf also getting picked up by the Welsh Fire, and PSL sensation-turned international star Ihsanullah heading to the Oval Invincibles. Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam were left unselected in the auction, however, despite being the No.2 and No.3 ranked T20I batters in the world respectively.
Shadab is currently captaining Pakistan in the T20I series against Afghanistan, taking the lead on a temporary basis as Babar sits out the series following the PSL. In the recently concluded 2023 edition of the PSL, Shadab captained Islamabad United to the knockout stages of the tournament. He has also played for three Big Bash teams, the most recent being Hobart Hurricanes and boasts plenty of franchise experience.
He turned out for the Guyana Amazon Warriors and Trinbago Knight Riders in the Caribbean Premier League, as well as two teams in the Bangladesh Premier League, the Khulna Tigers and the Dhaka Platoon.
Birmingham Phoenix will hope to have their faith in him rewarded with a stellar showing in the Hundred this summer.
