Shaheen Afridi To Rejoin LPL 2026, 2 Other Pakistan Stars Added To Kandy Royals Squad

Shaheen Afridi is set to join the Kandy Royals team before knockouts [Source: AP]

Pakistan pacer Shaheen Afridi was not picked in the Test squad for the West Indies tour; instead, he decided to play in the Lanka Premier League as Kandy Royals roped him into their squad for the season. Interestingly, after playing a couple of games in the LPL, Shaheen left the tournament midway.

The Pakistan pacer withdrew from the tournament, but he was expected to return if the Kandy Royals qualified for the playoffs, which they did. As a result, the pacer has stuck to his prior commitment and has reportedly rejoined the team ahead of the knockouts.

Shaheen Afridi rejoins LPL after major controversy

According to Geo News, the left-arm seamer is set to rejoin his LPL side, Kandy Royals, alongside his national teammates, Hassan Nawaz and Khushdil Shah. Shaheen had already informed the franchise that he’ll leave the tournament due to personal reasons, but the details were not revealed by them.

Interestingly, his withdrawal came days after an administrative error that resulted in his omission from Kandy Royals playing XI against Colombo Capitals.

For that particular game, Shaheen was named in the impact players’ list. However, after the Kandy Royals elected to bat first, team management informed him that his name had been mistakenly left out of the official team sheet because of an analyst’s error.

This incident resulted in Shaheen raising the matter with the LPL Anti-Corruption Unit before the matter was raised with the match referee. The organizers and the franchise apologised to the Pakistan player, but he eventually left the tournament midway.

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However, as Kandy have reached the playoffs, the Pakistan ODI captain is back with the team in what comes in as a major boost for them.

Shaheen Afridi endured poor LPL 2026 before withdrawing

Shaheen was not selected in the Test team, and it was expected that the pacer would regain his Midas touch by performing in the competitive LPL. Nonetheless, the fast bowler endured a poor campaign before leaving the tournament midway.

The 26-year-old featured in six games for the Kandy Royals, and he managed to pick up 7 wickets, with an average of 32.00 and an economy rate of 10.18. He looked out of his depth as the batters toyed with him in all six matches that he played.

Moreover, Shaheen, known for his pace, witnessed a downfall as his average speed was around 130 km/h, and this hampered his bowling as he allowed the batters to adjust against him.

Kandy Royals sign two more Pakistan stars apart from Shaheen

While, Shaheen’s return will provide a massive boost to the Kandy Royals, the franchise has also signed two of his teammates ahead of the knockouts.

Khushdil Shah and Hassan Nawaz will also join the team, which further enhances the team combination as three quality Pakistan players are picked in the Kandy squad before the all-important knockout game.

The Pakistani trio replaces Moeen Ali, Sediqullah Atal and Brandon McMullen, who have left the squad after their commitments ended.

While Shaheen is expected to be included in the playing XI, the same cannot be said about his other two teammates. The left-arm seamer’s experience could come in handy for the Royals in their next LPL match, and hence, the Royals might not tinker too much with their already existing playing combination.

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