KARACHI, Pakistan, CMC – West Indies discard Sherfane Rutherford has been retained by Peshawar Zalmi ahead of today’s draft for next year’s Pakistan Super League.
Under league rules, franchises can retain as many as eight players and the 23-year-old has been signed to the diamond category, the second highest of four categories used by organisers.
He was among the franchise’s leading batsmen last season with 276 runs at an average of 34 and a strike-rate of 153.
Rutherford will feature alongside the likes of Pakistan legend Shoaib Malik and left-arm pacer Wahab Riaz, in the tournament which runs from January 27 to February 27.
Franchises will be allowed to sign another eight players from the draft set for Lahore.
Rutherford, an attacking left-hander, has been ignored by West Indies selectors since playing the last of his six Twenty20 Internationals almost two years ago.
The Guyanese was also among the leading run-scorers in the Caribbean Premier League earlier this year with three half-centuries as St Kitts and Nevis Patriots won their first-ever title.
However, he was subsequently snubbed for the Twenty20 World Cup in United Arab Emirates on fitness grounds.
Days later, he was picked up by Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League, and is currently campaigning in the Lanka Premier League in Sri Lanka.
Rutherford is the only West Indies player on the retained list but several Caribbean stars like Chris Gayle, Carlos Brathwaite and Lendl Simmons, are expected to be available in the draft.
Zalmi, the 2017 champions, have been losing finalists for three of the last four seasons, and are one of six franchises competing in the league.
