HBL PSL 10: Star players won't burden franchise budgets

PSL franchises won’t be financially burdened as PCB covers $100,000 per foreign player, including Warner.

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The inclusion of key foreign stars in the HBL PSL will not burden the franchise owners financially. The PCB will pay $100,000 per player from allocated funds.

Before the draft, the cricket board shared a list of foreign stars with franchises, with special notes mentioned for some players.

David Warner’s minimum fee was set at $300,000, and Karachi Kings selected him, making him the most expensive cricketer in HBL PSL history. However, the franchise will not have to pay the entire $300,000.

A few years ago, the HBL PSL governing council decided that when the central pool's net broadcast revenue reached 3 billion rupees, $500,000 would be allocated annually for elite players' salaries.

Last year, this wasn't needed, but now the amount has increased to $1 million. The PCB will use this fund to assist in paying players like David Warner and Daryl Mitchell.

A maximum of $100,000 can be paid for each player from this fund. Thus, Karachi Kings will only pay $200,000 for Warner.

Daryl Mitchell's minimum fee was set at $200,000, and Lahore Qalandars acquired his services.

Previously, the maximum fee for a player in the HBL PSL was $170,000, though AB de Villiers and Kieron Pollard were paid $250,000 and $230,000, respectively.

The PCB wanted to increase fees to attract big players to the league, but scheduling conflicts with the IPL caused challenges.