Organised by the Ibn Ajayan Projects, one of the leading facility management companies in Qatar, and QPLAYS, the event is managed by Qbiz Events. Ibn Ajayan Trophy is part of a cricket tournament held every year.
Ibn Ajayan Projects have been promoting and popularising cricket in Qatar, organising many tournaments over the last few years, with the game widely followed by the Asian expats.
The vision of Ibn Ajayan Projects is to develop a cricketing culture in Qatar and holding these kind of tournaments will go a long way in expanding the game in the country.
The championship will be held over a period of three months, with matches being held on Saturdays, Mondays and Wednesdays from 7:30pm. The final will take place in the second week of February.
The tournament inauguration will be held tomorrow, followed by the opening match between Vodafone and Shark XI. A total of 16 teams have confirmed their participation, with four teams divided into four groups each. The winner takes home QR15,000 while the runners-up is richer by QR10,000.
Group A comprises of CBQ-Blue, United Challengers, Masters CC, Friends XI, while Vodafone, Pak Falcons, Kansai Paints, Shark XI complete Group B.
In Group C, the teams are Pakistan cricket Academy (PCA), Regal Strikers, The Gladiators, Al Hamra CC and in Group D the teams consist of Al Noof CC, Centurian CC, Qatar Foundation, Lankan CC.
The matches will  be played on league-cum-knockout format, with top two teams from each group, after preliminary round, qualifying for the quarter-finals.
The championship will played as per Qatar Cricket Association’s tournament rules and regulations. The tournament co-ordinator is Riyaz Cheeroth, while Mohamed Naseem is the technical co-ordinator.
 
TEAMS
Group A: CBQ-Blue, United Challengers, Masters CC, Friends XI
Group B: Vodafone, Pak Falcons, Kansai Paints, Shark XI
Group C: Pakistan cricket Academy (PCA), Regal Strikers, The Gladiators, Al Hamra CC
Group D: Al Noof CC, Centurian CC, Qatar Foundation, Lankan CC

Related Story