Pakistan's senior cricketer Shoaib Malik on Friday resigned as captain of the Karachi Kings. Malik's team is among the top four teams of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), which have sealed a place in the playoff round of the T20 league.
"I have always played for the team and not for myself and I want to deliver in the playoffs for Karachi which is why I stepped down as captain," Malik said in a press conference, according to Daily Times. "My performance is being affected by the captaincy and I have not been able to fulfil my role."
Malik, considered Pakistan's best T20 skipper in domestic cricket, handed over captaincy to English batsman Ravi Bopara.
"I spoke to the team management and owners and told them to kindly make Ravi Bopara the captain," he announced. "Ravi Bopara is a wonderful player and can help Karachi Kings lift the Pakistan Super League (PSL) trophy," the all-rounder said, according to ARY News.
Bopara will lead Kings against Islamabad United in the eliminator match of the Pakistan Super League ( PSL 2016) at Dubai International Cricket Stadium in United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Saturday. Watch the live stream and videos here and here and live scores here. The twenty over match starts at 8 p.m. local time or 9 p.m. PKT (4 p.m. GMT/ 9:30 IST/11 a.m. EST/ 8 a.m. PT) on Feb. 20.
Probable Squads
Karachi Kings: Shoaib Malik, Shakib Al Hasan, Sohail Tanvir, Imad Wasim, Ravi Bopara, Lendl Simmons, Nauman Anwar, Sohail Khan, Mir Hamza, Saifullah Bangash, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mohammad Amir, Bilawal Bhatti, James Vince, Iftikhar Ahmed, Usama Mir, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Shahzaib Hasan, Fawad Alam
Islamabad United: Misbah-ul-Haq, Shane Watson, Mohammad Irfan, Brad Haddin, Sharjeel Khan, Imran Khalid, Kamran Ghulam, Umar Amin, Sam Billings Mohammad Sami, Khalid Latif, Babar Azam, Andre Russell, Samuel Badree, Rumman Raees, Amad Butt, Saeed Ajmal, Hussain Talat Ashar Zaidi, Umar Siddiq
