Desert Vipers, a franchise of the International League (IL) T20, hinted at signing Pakistani pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi for second season of the cash-rich tournament.
The franchise shared a post on X in which they gave some hints about their new signing.
The hints in the shared picture and post clearly tell fans that Shaheen is going to play for the Vipers in next year's ILT20.
In the previous edition, no Pakistani player featured in ILT20 which is financially backed by the Indian companies. The then-PCB chairman Ramiz Raja wasn't interested in sending the players to ILT20. Instead, he asked compensation from the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) in exchange for releasing their players.
Pakistani players including Babar Azam, Shaheen and Mohammad Rizwan were offered a whopping USD 900,000 alongside a three-year captaincy contract before the inaugural edition of ILT20.
Fakhar Zaman and Mohammad Hasnain were also in demand for the league. Later on, wicketkeeper batter Azam Khan was picked up by the Vipers but he didn't get No-Objection Certificate (NOC).
Dubai Capitals, Abu Dhabi Knight Riders, MI Emirates, Sharjah Warriors, Gulf Giants, and Vipers competed in the inaugural edition of the ILT20. Giants, under the leadership of Colin Munro, beat Vipers in the final to lift the trophy on February 12 this year.
- Shaheen Afridi