At Lahore's gorgeous Huzoori Bagh, the much-awaited player draft for the 10th edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2025 got off to a rough start. The draft eventually got off with great excitement after being delayed from its initial date of January 11. However, players and supporters were left in a state of dissatisfaction due to technical issues, such as frequent microphone problems.
Shaheen Afridi faces a microphone malfunction
Former English pacer Dominic Cork hosted the drafting event this afternoon, but the atmosphere was briefly soured when Shaheen Afridi, the captain of the Lahore Qalandars and Pakistan's top fast bowler, had to deal with a difficult situation. Afridi was supposed to reveal the franchise's first selection, but his statement was cut short by a malfunctioning microphone.
In a rare display of annoyance off the field, Shaheen made an animated gesture to show how annoyed he was. Thankfully, the problem was quickly fixed, enabling him to declare Daryl Mitchell the Lahore Qalandars' 2025 first draft selection. His reaction in going viral all over social media.
Similar microphone problems happened throughout the event, thus this was not the only incident. This led to a lot of social media comments. In response to the ongoing technical problems, fans swiftly flocked to social media to troll the event.
Lahore Qalandars won the PSL championship in 2023 under Shaheen's captaincy, demonstrating his leadership prowess. But the following year, the team struggled and fell short of high hopes. The Qalandars are preparing for another chance at glory in the 2025 season with the goal of atonement in mind, and Shaheen is anticipated to be a key player in their campaign.
The Qalandars retained Shaheen Afrdii, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Sikanadar Raza, Abdullah Shafique, Jahandad Khan, Zaman Khan, and David Wiese. They later picked big names like Daryl Mitchell, Kusal Perera, Tom Curran, and Asif Ali to bring together a formidable squad