Minister ko thoda tight karna padega: Babar Azam excited to play with Wahab Riaz in PSL

Riaz's appointment as sports Minister is quite similar to West Bengal player Manoj Tiwary's portfolio as State Sports Minister. He contested assembly elections from Shibpur (Vidhan Sabha constituency) and won as a member of the legislative assembly in 2021.

Wahab Riaz on the left and Pakistan skipper Babar Azam on the right.(Screengrab)

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Pakistan skipper Babar Azam said he is excited to play alongside the caretaker Sports Minister of the Punjab province Wahab Riaz in the upcoming Pakistan Super League(PSL).

Babar Azam speaking about the prospect of playing with his former teammate Riaz said, “Abhi to Minister sahab Wahab bhai, abhi kafi excited hu Wahab bhai ayenge. Lekin woh kafi experience hein aur wo T20 kafi der se kelte a rahe hain. Wo kafi cheezon ko samajthe hain. Koshish yahi hai ki ache tarike se khelen. Minister ko thora tight karna padega.” (Now he is the Minister. I am excited to play with him Wahab has a lot of experience. He has been playing T20 cricket for a long time. He understands things. The ultimate goal is to play fairly and Minister should keep things tight.)

Is bar Sports Minister Wahab Riaz ke sath PSL me khelna he.. Minister ko thora tight kerna prre ga🤣: Babar Azam#BabarAzam𓃵 #HBLPSL8 pic.twitter.com/AExk6CEm89

— Muhammad Noman (@nomanedits) February 2, 2023

Riaz’s appointment as sports Minister is quite similar to West Bengal player Manoj Tiwary’s portfolio as State Sports Minister. He contested assembly elections from Shibpur (Vidhan Sabha constituency) and won as a member of the legislative assembly in 2021.

Both players despite being involved in politics are active on the cricket circuit.

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Wahab, who is currently playing in the Bangladesh Premier League, will take oath after he returns to Pakistan.

There is no official word on what this means for his involvement with the Pakistan Super League.

The 37-year-old has been retained by Peshawar Zalmi for this year’s Pakistan Super League and is expected to fulfil his commitment to the team despite his appointment as the caretaker Sports Minister of the Punjab province.

Babar moved from Karachi Kings to Peshawar Zalmi earlier this year. He has taken the captaincy reigns from Riaz.

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Wahab last played for Pakistan in 2020 and has appeared in 27 Tests, 92 ODIs and 36 T20 internationals. He is the leading wicket-taker in the PSL with 103 wickets.

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