Former West Indies captain Darren Sammy is reportedly set to be named an honourary citizen of Pakistan.

The 36-year-old allrounder has become a popular figure in the country, where he has captained Pakistan Super League (PSL) Peshawar Zalmi to the title.  The player has, however, been recognized for an even more important contribution and that is his prominent role in advocating for the return of international cricket to Pakistan.

The country was blacklisted as a destination for international cricket in 2009 after a horrific attack on the Sri Lankan team bus outside the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.  International cricket, however, returned to the country in 2017, with Test cricket returning last year.

Sammy was the first player to agree to tour Pakistan when the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) attempted to bring the PSL final to the country.

When an ICC World XI was lined up to tour Pakistan for three T20Is in September 2017, it was Sammy who spoke as part of that squad to the other tourists as part of a security briefing.

The idea of honourary citizenship was first broached by Javed Afridi, the owner of Peshawar Zalmi.  The PCB then followed up with the federal government and the honour was accepted.  Sammy will also receive the Nishan-e-Pakistan, the country's top civilian award, on March 23 in Islamabad.