Sunil Narine will not take any part in the initial stages of the fourth edition of Pakistan Super League(PSL) due to a finger injury. There are in fact doubts about Narine’s participation in the entire tournament as his team Quetta Gladiators will have to wait for a medical examination set to be done on the off-spinner later this month.
Narine, who was picked up by Quetta Gladiators in last auctions as one of their marquee players, sustained the finger during the recently-concluded Bangladesh Premier League. Narine represented Lahore Qalandars in the last edition of PSL.
Narine’s absence could turn out to be a major blow for Gladiators, who have reached the finals of the tournament twice but are yet to win the title. If Narine fails to recover in time then Gladiators will have to depend on Australian leggie Fawad Ahmed, Afghanistan’s Mohammad Asghar and local player Mohammad Nawaz to provide them breakthroughs in the middle overs.
“Obviously, you cannot like for like replacement of a big player like Narine but we have drafted in Waller and we are confident that he will add value to our team,” Gladiators head coach Moin Khan was quoted as saying in Cricbuzz.
“It’s a blow just before the start of PSL but we will try to cope with it. We have got the depth in our squad as there are plenty other match-winners. We wish Narine a quick recovery and hope to welcome him very soon during HBL PSL,” he added.