The Jozi Stars, on Thursday (October 17), have confirmed another overseas signing for the upcoming edition of the Mzansi Super League (MSL) and he is Pakistan’s all-rounder Shoaib Malik.
The all-rounder will replace West Indies hard-hitter Chris Gayle, who will be making an exit after his sixth game in South Africa’s franchise event, at the defending MSL champions squad.
Shoaib bagged the deal following his successful outing in the recently concluded Caribbean Premier League (CPL) 2019, where he led Guyana Amazon Warriors to the final.
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On his signing, Malik said: “It’s very exciting for me to be joining Jozi Stars as I’ve never played domestic cricket in South Africa previously, although I have played many times there with my country. Hopefully, we can be successful, and I look forward to contributing to the cause when I join up with them.”
Jono Leaf-Wright, Central Gauteng Lions CEO, said of Malik’s signing: “As a batsman, he is capable of fulfilling many roles within the batting order. He has had success as an opener in Tests and ODIs and has been a game-changer in limited-over matches in the No. 3 role. He is the fourth-highest run-scorer in Twenty20 history behind Gayle, McCullum, and Pollard, and is a good T20 spinner as well. We are very excited to welcome Shoaib to our set up and seeing him excite our Jozi Stars fans with his brilliance.”
Meanwhile, newly-appointed Jozi Stars head coach Donovan Miller was highly delighted to have Malik at his team, saying the all-rounder is capable of filling so many different roles in the team.
Miller said of former Pakistan captain, “We’re extremely excited to have Shoaib Malik for the back-end of our campaign, I had the pleasure of working with him in Canada during the Global T20. He’s one of the best middle-order batters in this format; an unbelievable leader who fits into any environment and gives our batting line up plenty of options at the later stages of the competition. He’s more of a touch player, with elegance and one of the best finishers in the T20 format.”
Noteworthy, the all-rounder has played 357 T20 matches and went on to score 9018 runs with 53 half-centuries at a strike Rate 125.02 in his career so far.
(With Cricbuzz Inputs)
