Indies opener Chris Gayle and Pakistan allrounder Shahid Afridi, among the biggest entertainers in the Twenty20 format, have been named the two international icon players in the inaugural Sri Lanka Premier League that begins August 10.
The presence of the duo, who will join five other Sri Lanka players as icons of their respective teams, lends the fledgling league some star power and has the potential to boost viewership.
Gayle, who is set to play New Zealand in five ODIs and two Tests at home in a series that ends August 6, will represent the Uva province, while Afridi will play for Nagenahira, reported ESPNcricinfo.
Last week Sri Lanka Cricket auctioned the seven Sri Lanka Premier League teams for an average price of $4.3 million. A number of Indian companies are believed to have successfully bid for teams in the Sri Lanka Premier League (SLPL), highlighting the lure of the franchise model in cricket’s largest market despite the BCCI’s reluctance to allow Indian players to participate.
Among the companies are the Wadhawan Group, a business conglomerate with interests in real estate, retail and education, India Cricket Dundee, an Indian fan organisation along the lines of the Barmy Army, and the Delhi-based Rudra Group, which also has interests in real estate.
A player draft will be conducted on July 5 and 6, with a lottery held to determine the order in which players are picked. SLC will determine the value of the contract for each player in advance and the franchises will be made aware of the cost of the player. The players will be drafted in two groups – the first consisting of players from Sri Lanka and the second, the foreign players. The draft is being seen as the best way to ensure that players are evenly distributed among the teams, making it a level playing field.
The SLPL will run for three weeks, with the final to be held on August 31. There will be 24 games in total, split between Colombo and Pallekele. Teams will be allowed a maximum of 18 players, out of which six can be foreign players. Teams will be allowed play a maximum of four foreign players per game. Out of the remaining seven players in the XI, one must be a Sri Lanka Under-21 international.
Visa hassles to deny Afridi, Tanvir participation in England T20 : Meanwhile, Sohail Tanvir and Shahid Afridi, the Pakistani cricketers, will not feature in this the Friends Life Twenty20 championships in England this year due to visa-related hassles.
Worcestershire had initially planned to have Tanvir for the entire T20 season, but his recall to the Pakistan squad for the One-Day International series in Sri Lanka last month deemed him unavailable for the first half of the tournament. And now, with visa issues refusing to be resolved, the county will have to do without the lef-arm paceman for rest of the tournament too.
“It has been well documented that obtaining visa for overseas professionals is becoming more and more difficult,” said David Leatherdale, Chief Executive of Worcestershire County Cricket Club. “We are very disappointed that Sohail won’t be joining us. But with just four group matches remaining, and still no guarantee that the visa process has been completed in Pakistan, his stay with the club is no longer practical.”
Sohail’s unavailability meant Worcestershire have only one overseas player in Phil Hughes, the Australian opener, for their T20 campaign. The team, though, is on course for a quarterfinal berth after four wins in their first six matches.
Afridi, the former Pakistan captain, who was supposed to be available for Hampshire’s entire T20 campaign, is also unavailable. The delay in obtaining a visa meant that Hampshire stuck to their current set of players for the remainder of the tournament.
“We are deep into the 2012 competition and the side is settled so we don’t feel it is right to change that now,” said Giles White, manager of Hampshire County Cricket Club.
Afridi was one of the shining stars in the county’s campaign in 2011. His 17 wickets in ten matches helped the side qualify for the semifinal, which they lost to Somerset in the one-over eliminator. Hamsphire, however, did not rule Afridi out for the future. “The door is still open for him to return to Hampshire in future years should circumstances suit both parties,” said White.
