Trevor Bayliss, England’s World Cup Winning Coach, has been named as the Abu Dhabi franchise manager in the T10 league and Moeen Ali will be one of the players in his squad.
The T10 league is in its third season and is scheduled to be played between November 15-24.
Although no Indian was picked up at the draft, according to the National, the T10 league is in talks with Yuvraj Singh. Tournament chairman Shaji Ul Mulk said. “Yuvraj Singh is almost there.” He added, “We hope to make an announcement soon. We are in the final stages of negotiations with him.”
“This season, we are limited by the BCCI’s policy of having only retired India players in leagues outside India,” ul Mulk added.
There are eight teams, this time including Abu Dhabi, with three new franchises entering the competition.
The other two sides are Qalanders, who signed former Pakistani all-rounder Shahid Afridi as their icon player and Bangla Tigers picked up World Cup winner James Faulkner in 2015.
Bayliss said, “T10 cricket is big, and it’s bold, but it also requires a certain style of player and capability. It tests players’ tactical talent and skills at the very highest level.”
Moeen said, “It’s an impressive list of some of the best T10 players on show in Abu Dhabi. Fans are going to be treated to something quite special, there’s no doubt about it. I would say there’s extra incentive playing for Team Abu Dhabi to show the world what Abu Dhabi T10 cricket is all about.”
There will be plenty of English players in the competition, with the Qalandars picking up Tom Bantom from Somerset. England’s captain Eion Morgan and Adil Rashid will be at the helm of the newly formed Delhi Bulls. Andy Flower is at the helm of the Maratha Arabians franchise, which has selected Australia’s Chris Lynn as their icon player.
The tournament will also see a host of West Indian players lining up for the reigning Northern Warriors champions with Darren Sammy.
The current West Indies white-ball cricket captain Kieron Pollard was picked up by Deccan Gladiators (formerly Sindhis) while Marlon Samuels and Evin Lewis will play in Karnataka Tuskers alongside former South African batsman Hashim Amla and Nepal legspinner Sandeep Lamichhane.
Pakistan is not far behind either with the Arabians playing fast bowler Mohammad Amir.
The Qalandars have Imad Wasim, Faheem Ashraf, and Mohammad Hafeez in their line-up while the young fast bowler Mohammad Hasnain and Shoaib Malik were picked up by Bulls.
Taking part this season will also be Sri Lanka’s T20 stars, including Lasith Malinga, Thisara Perera (Bangla Tigers) and Niroshan Dickwella (Abu Dhabi).
