Pakistan Star, Banned For Ball Tampering In PSL, Opens Up On T20I Retirement Talks
Fakhar Zaman made the news for all the wrong reasons recently, after being handed a two-match PSL ban for his involvement in a ball-tampering incident during a match against Karachi Kings.
- Fakhar Zaman has addressed mounting speculation over his T20I future
- Fakhar, who is currently serving a 2-match ban in PSL, said he has no immediate plans to retire from T20Is
- "I no longer intend to retire and want to finish my T20 career on a high note," said the 35-year-old
Veteran batter Fakhar Zaman has addressed mounting speculation over his international future, confirming he has no immediate plans to retire from T20Is. Currently representing Lahore Qalandars in the PSL, Fakhar is serving a two-match ban after being found guilty of ball-tampering during a recent fixture. The 35-year-old admitted that while he had initially considered retiring following the 2026 T20 World Cup, which concluded last month, he has performed a U-turn and no longer wishes to step away from the shortest format.
"After the World Cup, I had decided to retire from T20 cricket. However, I no longer intend to retire and want to finish my T20 career on a high note," Fakhar was quoted as saying by Geo News.
Fakhar Zaman made the news for all the wrong reasons recently, after being handed a two-match PSL ban for his involvement in a ball-tampering incident during a match against Karachi Kings.
According to PTI, Fakhar was already being watched closely by the umpires even before they changed the ball and awarded five runs penalty against Lahore Qalandars.
"The Karachi Kings management had brought to the notice of the fourth umpire and subsequently the match referee from the 13th over onwards that they suspected Fakhar was doing something to the ball," said a source.
The source claimed the referee had asked the on-field umpires to keep a watch on the Lahore Qalandars team, particularly Zaman.
"Before the final over, umpire Faisal Afridi had already been watching closely. He asked for the ball and on inspecting it suspected it had been tampered with a foreign object," he added.
"That is why the decision to change the ball and award penalty runs was given," he stated.
Zaman after being banned had also appealed to the technical committee of the PSL to overturn the referee's decision but they rejected his ban on the grounds that there was enough circumstantial evidence available to the umpires and match referee to take action against Zaman.
The Pakistan batsman had to sit out for the Lahore game against Multan Sultans on Friday night because of the ban and is set is miss another game ion April 9.
(With PTI Inputs)
Pakistan Cricket Team
Fakhar Zaman
Lahore Qalandars