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The defending champions of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) Lahore Qalandars have released Haris Rauf and Fakhar Zaman ahead of the historic auction, which will be held on February 11.
The franchise revealed the retained players in an animated poster on social media.
Among the retained players are skipper Shaheen Afridi (Platinum), middle-order batter Abdullah Shafiqe (Diamond), all-rounder Sikandar Raza (Gold), and Mohammad Naeem (Silver).
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With the limitation to retain one player from each of the four categories, the Qalandars have let go of their ace duo of Zaman and Rauf, who were placed in the Platinum category alongside Shaheen Shah Afridi.
It is worth noting that PSL is set to move to an auction format, marking a shift from the traditional draft system that has been in place since its adoption.
Under the new structure, each franchise is allowed to retain up to four players, with one player per category.
Moreover, this time around, teams could not retain up to eight players, along with additional provisions such as mentors, brand ambassadors, and the Right to Match (RTM) option.
The PCB has also abolished the mentor, brand ambassador, and RTM clauses altogether, streamlining the squad-building process ahead of the auction.
For the unversed, the PSL 11 will get underway on March 26, 2026, and will mark Faisalabad’s first-ever stint as a host city. The venue will join Karachi, Lahore, Multan, and Rawalpindi, expanding the league to five host cities.
