Ihsanullah announces retirement from HBL PSL

Pakistan pacer Ihsanullah has announced his retirement from the Pakistan Super League (PSL) following his exclusion from the PSL 10 draft. He has decided to boycott the competition completely.

In a recent interview, the 22-year-old expressed his frustration at being overlooked by all PSL franchises despite his impressive past performances. Ihsanullah revealed that none of the teams reached out to him, which he found disappointing.

"Not a single franchise contacted me," Ihsanullah said. "If you perform, these franchises will come after you. My goal is to make them chase after me, and I need to perform like that. I'll bowl at a pace of 150-160, and those who have said I'm a 130-135 bowler, in one and a half months, I'll show them that I wasn't the same bowler who played in PSL 8 and got injured. I'll look much better than that."

His remarks came after Multan Sultans' owner, Ali Tareen, made a statement regarding Ihsanullah's injury. Tareen mentioned that the pacer's right elbow surgery had left lasting damage, which prevented him from bowling at his full potential.

"It is a very sad development, but we got Ihsanullah consulted with a top surgeon, who gave us some really bad news, saying that 'guys, I can do the surgery, but no matter what I do, there is so much scarring from his previously botched surgery that his arm will never become perfectly straight, and he will never be able to bowl in the same way because he does not have a straight arm,'" said Tareen.

Ihsanullah made it clear that his decision to retire from PSL was not made out of emotion, but rather due to his growing disillusionment with the selfish nature of the cricketing world.

"I've seen it myself—it's a selfish world with selfish people," he shared. "I just don't want to play franchise cricket anymore. It's over after today. I completely boycott it and retire from the PSL. I won't be seen in the PSL again. I want to represent Pakistan by performing in domestic cricket, not by playing in the PSL."

Despite his decision, Ihsanullah's passion for cricket remains strong. He expressed his disappointment over not being contacted by Multan Sultans, despite his past support from the franchise.

"I've never been contacted by Ali Tareen or anyone from the team," he said. "When someone else finds another person, they go with them. He used to support my performance and talent."

Ihsanullah was a standout performer in PSL 8, taking 22 wickets in 12 matches at an impressive average of 15.77. However, he has been sidelined since April 2023 due to an elbow injury. He made a comeback in the Champions T20 Cup, taking two wickets in four matches. Ihsanullah has also represented Pakistan in one ODI and four T20Is, picking up six wickets in the 20-over format.