IANS/Mumbai
Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly will be playing for the Libra Legends franchise in the Masters Champions League (MCL), the first of its kind tournament in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), aimed at giving retired cricketers a chance to take the field again.
The MCL, which will feature a total of six teams playing in the Twenty20 format, has already got the approval from the International Cricket Council (ICC).
This first edition is slated to start on January 28 next year, and will go on till February 14. The six teams will accommodate a total of 90 players (15 members per squad) which will entirely be held in different stadia across the UAE.
Confirming Ganguly’s inclusion in the team at the launch of first franchise of the league here, Libra Legends’ co-owner Pooja Jhunjhunwala promised to gift the fans quality entertainment.
“We are happy to announce Sourav Ganguly as a member of our team. We are privileged to have such a player like him in our side. We wish to give quality entertainment to the fans through this league,” the Libra Legends co-owner said here yesterday. The league will feature only retired international players. Brain Lara, Adam Gilchrist, Wasim Akram, Virender Sehwag, and Jacques Kallis have been signed up as ‘icons’ so far.
The matches will be held across the UAE in Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium and Sharjah Cricket Stadium -- destinations which have previously hosted cricket tournaments including the Indian Premier League, as well as One-Day Internationals, T20 and several Test matches.
Kumble quits Mumbai Indians
Anil Kumble yesterday decided to step down as chief mentor of Mumbai Indians with immediate effect. The former Indian captain and leg-spinner has been associated with the Indian Premier League (IPL) outfit since January 2013 and now has decided to pursue other opportunities in sports and cricket.
In his first year as mentor, Mumbai Indians won the IPL and the Champions League in 2013. The outfit again won IPL this year. “I sign off with the obvious satisfaction of moulding a set of brilliant individuals to a high performing unit. Over the three years, Mumbai Indians met unprecedented success winning the IPL twice and the Champions League once. Winning both trophies in the same year (2013) being our crowning glory,” said India’s highest wicket-taker in both Tests and One-Day Internationals (ODI).
“As I move on to pursue other interests around cricket, I shall be amiss if I do not express my deep sense of appreciation to the Ambani family for their unstinted support and empowerment. The players and my support team have been an admirable bunch and were a joy to work with. Finally, I thank the fans for their constant support. I wish the Mumbai Indians farewell, convinced that I remain a member of the Ambani family.”
