Gujarat Titans are likely to rope in young Afghanistan batsman Rahmanullah Gurbaz as Jason Roy”s replacement for IPL 2022. Incidentally, Roy had pulled out of the competition citing bubble fatigue.
The 20-year-old Afghan batter is likely to be the backup option for Wriddhiman Saha, who is expected to be Gujarat’s first-choice wicketkeeper. However, a report in Cricbuzz states that Rahmanullah Gurbaz is likely to get a contract to avoid any last-minute trouble in the wake of the recent Saha episode.
The reports also add that the contract papers have been sent for the approval of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). However, there hasn’t been a confirmation from the franchise management on this. Incidentally, Rahmanullah Gurbaz had a base price of Rs 50 lakh but went unsold at the two-day auction
Meanwhile, Gujarat Titans have another wicketkeeper, Matthew Wade, in their ranks but as Cricket Australia (CA) has already decreed, the contracted Australian players will not be playing in IPL till April 6. As a result, Wade is likely to miss the first couple of matches.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz will join countrymen Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad in the Gujarat team. He becomes the fifth Afghan in the league which also has Mohammad Nabi (Kolkata Knight Riders) and Fazalhaq Farooqi (Sunrisers Hyderabad) from the country.
Gurbaz has represented Afghanistan in nine ODIs and 20 T20Is, scoring 428 and 534 runs respectively. He was recently part of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) and played some decent knocks for his franchise.
Gujarat Titans, the new entrants in IPL 2022, will begin their campaign against Lucknow Super Giants on March 28 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
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