FORMER England cricket team captain Eoin Morgan and Zimbabwe Cricket's poster boy Sikandar Raza headline a star-studded list of players lining up Zim Afro T10 ahead of the tournament draft on July 2.Organised by Zimbabwe Cricket in association with T Ten Global Sports, the five-team Zim Afro T10 is expected to be one of the most riveting tournaments of the year and will be played from July 20 to 29.
The inaugural event is expected to attract some big-name players with the likes of Raza, Morgan, Robin Uthappa, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Asif Ali and Yusuf Pathan already gearing up for the trip to Harare after being named amongst the pre-draft marquee players.
According to the competition rules announced by Zimbabwe Cricket yesterday, each squad needs to have a minimum of 16 players including at least six Zimbabwean players, out of which one local player will be selected from the emerging player category during a nationwide talent hunt. Ahead of the draft, the franchises can have a maximum of four top internationals as their pre-signed players – these four would be selected and announced before the start of the draft.
The five teams that will battle it out for the top honours are Harare Hurricanes, Joburg Buffaloes, Durban Qalandars, Bulawayo Braves and Cape Town Samp Army. All the games in the tournament will be played in Harare.
Zimbabwe Cricket’s managing director Givemore Makoni said: “We are in the final stages ahead of the Zim Afro T10’s inaugural edition. This gives me immense joy, because to see this play out in reality has been a dream for all of the Zimbabwean cricket family, and it is a watershed moment in the history of the sport in the country. The fans, I am sure, are keenly waiting for the opening day.”
Nawab Shaji Ul Mulk, T Ten Global Sports Founder and Chairman, said: “To bring the T10 to Zimbabwe has been high on the agenda for us in the recent past, and that we are on the home stretch ahead of the inaugural edition of the tournament, is a source of great satisfaction for me. This is a red-letter day in the history of the sport, there will be another landmark on the day of the player draft. We can’t wait to get things rolling and welcome the best of the best players to Harare.”
Pre-Draft signingsHarare Hurricanes: Eoin Morgan, Evin Lewis, Shahnawaz Dahani, Robin UthappaCape Town Samp Army: Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Karim Janat, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Maheesh TheekshanaDurban Qalandars: Asif Ali, Sisanda Magala, George Linde, Hazratullah ZazaiJoburg Buffaloes: Yusuf Pathan, Mushfiqur Rehman, Tom Banton, Noor AhmedBulawayo Braves: Sikander Raza, Ashton Turner, Tymal Mills, Ben McDermott
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