Pakistan opening batsman Ahmed Shahzad announced on Friday that he was parting ways with the Pakistan Super League (PSL) after going unpicked in the recently concluded PSL draft, which according to him was a “deliberate effort” to keep him out of the tournament.

The PSL 2024 draft took place in Lahore on December 13. The six franchises — Karachi Kings, Peshawar Zalmi, Multan Sultans, Quetta Gladiators, Lahore Qalandars, and Islamabad United — selected numerous players across six categories: “Platinum, Diamond, Gold, Silver, Emerging, and Supplementary.”

However, who was the top-scorer for Lahore Whites in the National T20 Cup, wasn’t selected by any of them.

Shahzad expressed his frustration on X (formerly Twitter), starting with: “Another PSL draft goes by and same old story — didn’t get picked. God knows why!”

He said he had tried “really hard by giving it all in the domestic circuit consistently” in the last few years, adding that his performance in the National T20 Cup was also “reasonably well”.

“There seems a deliberate effort to keep me out, even when franchises have opted for other performers with inferior numbers than me,” he lamented.

Shahzad said he knows “exactly the reasons why I’m not made part of the PSL — the whole country, and my fans will know it very soon”.

Terming his non-inclusion a “pre-planned” move, he said he was saying goodbye to the Pakistan Super League for his own self-respect.

“I’ve never played for money and will never do it,” he said, adding that he was offered several contracts to play leagues yet chose Pakistan.

He said he was thankful to Allah that “I always stood firm on my moral responsibilities and have never let myself, my family and my country down”.

“If that’s the price I have to pay for my honesty and dedication, it’s a small price to pay and I will continue doing it,” he added.

Shahzad has previously played for both Quetta Gladiators and Multan Sultans in the PSL. His most recent participation in the league was with Quetta in 2020.