Former Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Amir has emerged as the sole Pakistani cricketer selected in the draft for the relaunched Afghanistan Premier League, while the Pakistan Cricket Board is reportedly unlikely to grant No Objection Certificates to other players for the tournament. Amir was picked by the Kandahar Warriors in the Platinum category during the five-team franchise competition's player selection process held on Tuesday.
The draft featured several established international names alongside Amir, including England's Moeen Ali and Alex Hales, West Indies batter Johnson Charles, Sri Lankan all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga and Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan. Afghanistan internationals Rashid Khan, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rahmat Shah and Ibrahim Zadran were confirmed as captains for the five competing franchises ahead of the selection process.
A last-minute leadership adjustment preceded the draft, with Gurbaz taking charge of Team Paktia and Rahmat Shah moving to lead the Nangarhar Kazmics. The Afghanistan Cricket Board revealed that approximately 1,500 domestic and international players initially registered for the competition before the talent pool was reduced to 462 eligible cricketers for the draft.
Players were categorised into five distinct tiers comprising Platinum, Diamond, Gold, Silver and Emerging for the franchise selection proceedings. Under tournament squad regulations, each franchise is permitted to register up to 19 active players, with the main draft determining 17 squad positions and a supplementary round covering the remainder.
Franchise recruitment rules mandate that every team must include at least 12 Afghan or local players while capping overseas representation at a maximum of seven. Teams are required to feature a minimum of six foreign cricketers and must field between three and four overseas players in their starting eleven.
Playing XIs are strictly required to contain at least seven Afghan or local cricketers, which must incorporate a minimum of one player from the Emerging category. The combined player salary budget for each franchise has been fixed at $0.7million to maintain financial balance across the competing teams.
The tournament marks a return for the franchise competition after its troubled inaugural season in 2018, which featured high-profile international stars such as Chris Gayle, Brendon McCullum and Shahid Afridi. That initial edition failed to establish itself as a regular fixture on the global cricket calendar due to payment-related disputes and transparency concerns.
Meanwhile, the league's relaunch has generated debate within English cricket regarding international participation, with England batter Ollie Pope withdrawing from the draft following consultations with the England and Wales Cricket Board. The ECB has avoided arranging bilateral series against Afghanistan since 2021, and its leadership has previously expressed concerns regarding governance and social conditions under Taliban rule.
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