Nadeem Omer hits at Pietersen return to Gladiators next year

• The former England batsman retried from all forms of cricket in 2018 after playing his last game for the franchise.

Quetta Gladiators owner Nadeem Omar has hinted at Former England star Kevin Pietersen is likely to join Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchise in a new role, in next edition of the tournament.

The former England batsman retried from all forms of cricket in 2018 after playing his last game for the franchise.

Talking to media via video link, the owner of the franchise said, “Pietersen is a great friend of mine. I asked him to join the side as mentor but he declined due to presence of Sir Viv Richards, in order to avoid creating any issue.”

He added: “We can’t keep many mentors but I’m confident that next year he will join us in a new role.”

Omar once again blame travelling as the main reason behind defending champions’ below-par campaign in PSL season five.

Sarfaraz Ahmed-led side finished fifth in the points able with nine points from 10 games.

“After our initial games in Karachi, our players didn’t get chance to relax. There came a time, when we had to rush to the venue directly from the airport to play the match,” he said.

He termed Umar Akmal’s suspension hours before the tournament as the major lost for the side.

“He [Umar Akmal] is one of the finest middle-order batsmen in Pakistan and it was a major loss for our side when he was suspended hours before the start of PSL 5,” said Omar. “I would say that it damaged 30 per cent strength of our team.”