We learned our lesson from spot fixing scam: Misbah

Former Pakistan skipper Misbah-ul-Haq believes that Islamabad United won the third edition of Pakistan Super League (PSL) due to better selection and great teamwork.

Speaking to the media in Lahore at the Annual Sports Day, Misbah said his team was a well-balanced squad in all the departments and the boys played like a well-knit unit to earn the success.

Islamabad United won the PSL title for the second time, after earlier winning the inaugural edition in 2016 as well.

Misbah, who was sitting on the bench during the final against Peshawar Zalmi due to hairline fracture, also said that his team also learned a lot from the last year’s unfortunate episode of the spot-fixing.

The scandal had severely dented his team’s chances then and kept them out of the title race. “Learning our lesson well from the last season’s mishap, we moved ahead strongly and picked a better team that eventually emerged as the winner,” he said.

Last year, three cricketers of Islamabad United, namely Sharjeel Khan, Khalid Latif, Mohammad Irfan and Shahzaib Hasan of Karachi Kings were caught in a spot-fixing scam on the very first day of the second edition of PSL and were sidelined from the event. All of them, except for Irfan, were later served punishments by a Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) appointed tribunal.

Meanwhile, United fast bowler Irfan was penalized in the scam despite the fact that he turned an approver after owning up to the charges of not informing the PCB promptly about the offers made to him by the bookies.