United News of Bangladesh

Bangladesh cricketer Mustafizur Rahman has been roped in by Lahore Qalandars for the next season of the Pakistan Super League (PSL). Mustafizur was earlier bought by the Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League (IPL), but was later released due to security concerns for him in India, which sparked a geopolitical storm in the cricketing world.  The franchise announced on Thursday that they have secured the left-arm pacer via a direct signing ahead of the league's auction. The deal is valued at 64.4 million Pakistani Rupees (approximately 28.1 million Bangladeshi Taka). Mustafizur’s release from KKR triggered a domino effect that has since fractured the region's cricketing ties. Read More: Mustafizur Rahman named in Wisden’s 2025 T20 team of the year Following Mustafizur's exclusion, the Bangladesh government refused to send the national team to India for the T20 World Cup due to safety concerns. After the ICC rejected a venue change request and replaced Bangladesh with Scotland, the Pakistan government announced a boycott of their World Cup match against India in solidarity with Dhaka. Welcoming Mustafizur back, the Lahore Qalandars described the signing as a “return to the family,” referring to his previous stint with the team during the 2017-18 season. The 11th edition of the PSL, which has expanded to eight teams this year, is scheduled to run from March 26 to May 3. While the player draft is set for February 11, the Qalandars utilized the direct signing rule to secure Mustafizur’s services early.