After Yousuf\u2019s criticism
\nIslamabad
\nShahid Afridi has spoken in support of Shoaib Malik\u2019s continued participation in the HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL) after Pakistan\u2019s batting coach Mohammad Yousuf publicly questioned the 43-year-old\u2019s role as a player.
\nShoaib Malik, who is currently representing Quetta Gladiators in the ongoing HBL PSL 2025 season, has become the subject of debate after former Pakistan batter Mohammad Yousuf raised concerns about his continued presence in the tournament.
\nSpeaking on a cricket programme on television, Yousuf questioned the Pakistan Cricket Board\u2019s (PCB) stance on allowing players of Malik\u2019s age and profile to participate in the league. \u201cThe PCB needs to draw a line regarding Shoaib Malik playing the PSL,\u201d Yousuf said. \u201cIf you ask me to play, even I\u2019ll play.\u201d
\nYousuf added that the Board must make firm decisions about who is eligible to play in the PSL, hinting that Malik\u2019s dual roles as a player and a mentor could present a conflict of interest.
\nMalik was named a mentor for the Stallions during the Champions One-Day Cup last year, alongside Misbah-ul-Haq, Saqlain Mushtaq, and Sarfaraz Ahmed.
\nThe issue gained traction when the host of the show asked both Yousuf and Shahid Afridi when Malik should retire from cricket. Afridi, however, defended his former teammate\u2019s involvement.
\n\u201cHe can play till whenever he wants to,\u201d Afridi said. \u201cShoaib Malik can play some matches, but he should also miss a few games so that youngsters get their chance.\u201d
\nThe anchor then challenged Afridi\u2019s stance, pointing out that Malik\u2019s participation could block opportunities for emerging players. Afridi responded, \u201cYes, you are right. What else can I say?\u201d So far in the PSL 2025 season, Malik has appeared in two matches, scoring just 14 runs and going wicketless. His last international match for Pakistan came in 2021, in a T20I against Bangladesh.
\nThe debate highlights a growing conversation in Pakistan cricket about balancing experience with opportunity as veteran players extend their careers in domestic leagues.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
After Yousuf\u2019s criticism Islamabad Shahid Afridi has spoken in support of Shoaib Malik\u2019s continued participation in the HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL) after Pakistan\u2019s batting coach Mohammad Yousuf publicly questioned the 43-year-old\u2019s role as a player. Shoaib Malik, who is currently representing Quetta Gladiators in the ongoing HBL PSL 2025 season, has become the subject …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":79702,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-79692","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79692","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=79692"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79692\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":79703,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79692\/revisions\/79703"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/79702"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79692"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=79692"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=79692"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}