Pakistan batter Hasan Nawaz has rejoined Desert Vipers for the fifth season of the International League T20 (ILT20), replacing England’s Aneurin Donald, who will miss the tournament due to international commitments.
Nawaz returns to the franchise after helping it win the title in Season 4 earlier this year. He joins fellow Pakistani players Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Shadab Khan, and Naseem Shah in the squad.
Donald, who was signed during the recent auction, has been selected for England’s T20I series against Australia, scheduled for November and December.
Desert Vipers CEO Phil Oliver congratulated Donald on his international selection and welcomed Nawaz back to the team. He expressed confidence that the Pakistani batter would settle in quickly after playing an important role in last season’s title-winning campaign.
Nawaz has also performed well in franchise cricket this year, scoring 291 runs in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) at a strike rate of 134.1. He followed that with 220 runs for Antigua and Barbuda Falcons in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), finishing as the team’s joint-leading run-scorer alongside Evin Lewis as the Falcons won the title.
The right-handed batter also contributed in the field during the previous ILT20 season, taking 12 catches in 13 matches.
Nawaz has represented Pakistan at five different batting positions in T20 internationals, from opener to No. 6. Although the Vipers mainly used him as a finisher last season, he has also shown his ability to bat higher up the order, including a 96-run knock off 51 balls against India at No. 4 during the Asian Games in Japan.
Desert Vipers will begin their title defense against MI Emirates at Dubai International Stadium on November 21. The two teams met in last season’s final, which the Vipers won.
The fifth edition of the ILT20 will run from November 21 to December 20.
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