Kumar Sangakkara, Shahid Afridi and Virender Sehwag unveiled as Brand Ambassadors; Inzamam-ul-Haq is Brand Mentor; Eoin Morgan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Shakib Al Hasan named Team Icons. Get ready for the newest cricket format of 10-overs-a-side, 90-minute games, with entertainment to mark the inaugural edition of T10 Cricket League (TCL) kicks off 21-24 December 2017.
Pics captured by Shiraz Mughal and Ehtasham Saeed from Dubaibliss.com
The land of innovations, United Arab Emirates (UAE), is all set to welcome yet another this winter. Come December 2017 and the game of cricket would have transformed forever all thanks to the innovation of Shaji Ul Mulk.
Fans can now see cricket’s own version of 90-minute contests lasting 10-overs-a-side in a new entertaining tournament, titled T10 Cricket League (TCL). The entire tournament will be as swift as the format lasting just four days from 21-24 December filled with entertainment both on and off the field as rivalry rekindled amongst South Asian cricket superstars.
Six franchises-Punjabi Legends, Pakhtoons, Maratha Arabians, Bangla Tigers, Colombo Lions, and Kerala Kings- based entirely on the South Asian region with their icon players were unveiled on Tuesday at a grand launch of the tournament at the iconic JW Marriott Marquis Hotel in the city.
Among the Brand Ambassadors revealed were former Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara, former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi and former India captain Virender Sehwag. Current England ODI and T20I captain Eoin Morgan, Bangladesh’s talismanic all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan and ex-Pakistan skipper Misbah-ul-Haq were named Team Icons.
The final look of all squads will be firmed up on 25 October when around 120 players will go into a pool for a player draft to be held in Dubai.
Legendary former Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq was revealed as the Brand Mentor and also is the co-owner of Punjabi Legends, along with Intizar-ul-Haq. The Colombo franchise is owned by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), while the Maratha Arabians ownership will be a partnership between three — Bollywood actor Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi of Aqua Properties, and Parvez Khan of Pacific Ventures.
Pakhtoons is owned by Habib Khan, owner of General Petroleum and Tajuddin Khan, while Kerala Kings is jointly owned by Hussain Adam Ali and Dr Shafi Ul Mulk. Bangla Tigers’ ownership is jointly managed by Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) official Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnagar of NB Ventures, Anis Sajan and Rizwan Sajan of Danube.
It is only befitting that such an innovative approach is unveiled in a historic setting in the UAE and nothing fits this bill better than the Guinness Record Holder, Sharjah Cricket Stadium (SCS).
The entire concept of TCL is the brainchild of Shaji Ul Mulk, an innovator in his own right, since his arrival in the UAE. As the Chairman of TCL, Shaji Ul Mulk, has led his way through his company’s diversified business interests at Mulk Holdings.
But even after all these years of being the leader of his field, Shaji Ul Mulk was always keen to contribute to his first love, cricket. Having been a cricketer himself, Shaji Ul Mulk felt there was a gap in the cricket ecosystem which called out for something new.
“Since the advent of Twenty20 cricket, I always felt that there could be something else that our sport can offer the world. It was then that I sat down to discuss with my team. We came up with the thought that cricket needs to match the best sporting action in the world. Most of these sports last no more than 90 minutes.
“We need to evolve with times and nothing should signify this better than giving a product to the fans that they can relate with. So here we are after months of planning to finally unveil to the world, our dream (TCL),” added Shaji Ul Mulk, also a Member of the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB).
Essentially promoted by Shaji Ul Mulk’s T Ten Sports, the tournament has active support and backing of the ECB, the home board in the country. Also backing the tournament are the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) and Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB). The International Cricket Council (ICC) has also advised its member boards to allow its players to show their skills during the four-day competition.
David East, Chief Executive, ECB, said: “We are forever looking for concepts to help promote the game in the country. When this tournament concept came to us, it was a perfect opportunity for us to maximise our goals. We at the ECB wholeheartedly support this tournament and wish Shaji Ul Mulk’s team all the success.”
The tournament will not just be about entertainment on the field. There are a whole host of entertaining activities planned for fans who will walk in through the gate during the four-day extravaganza. “You cannot expect a better venue than the Sharjah Cricket Stadium to stage this exciting South Asian contest. The planned extravaganza will be something that the target audience from South
Asia will really relate to. It will be an opportunity to come over and have a good time during those four days. They also get to see their favourite stars in action,” added Jawad Ghulam Rasool, Chief Executive, TCL.
A massive themed opening ceremony has been planned with a grand entrance for each squad. Performances by Indian film stars, Pakistani TV, film stars and musicians, players and dancers will be a standard affair and mesmerizing light shows will add to the visual flavor of the launch.
After every over, there will be a performance to entertain the crowd. Dance-offs between rival team dancers will take place before and during the matches. An innings’ end will be marked with acrobatic performances, bands, parades, live music, celebrity crowd interaction and more for pure entertainment value.
For More Information:
Official TCL Website – www.ttensports.com
Official TCL Facebook Page – https://www.facebook.com/T10league/
Official TCL Twitter Handle – @ttencricketuae
Official TCL Instagram Handle – @t10league
About T Ten Sports
T Ten Sports Management FZE is a group company of the multinational and diversified conglomerate Mulk Holdings. The company is listed number 7 by Forbes and Arabian Business in the list of top 100 most influential companies in the Arabian world.
About Mulk Holdings
Mulk Holdings is a multinational group of companies with diversified business interests in Manufacturing of Alubond USA brand of Metal Composites, Interior and Exterior Design & Fit outs, Plastic Industries, Power Generation, Aluminum Coil Coatings, Healthcare, Real Estate, and Solar Energy. The company with its headquarters based in Hamriya Freezone Sharjah, UAE is spread across Europe, USA, Africa, Turkey, India and Middle-East. Mulk Holdings’ flagship brand Alubond USA- Metal Composites has grown into the world’s largest Metal Composite brand with operations in 11 countries and market reach of 90 countries.
About Emirates Cricket Board (ECB)
Cricket in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is governed by the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB), overseeing all cricket activities in the Emirates including the 4 major councils; Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai and Sharjah. In 1990 Emirates Cricket became an associate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC). An emerging One Day International (ODI) country, UAE Senior Men’s team won the ACC Trophy on four consecutive occasions between 2000 and 2006, they were runners-up in the other three times the tournament was played; 1996, 1998 and 2008.
UAE Men’s won the ICC Trophy in 1994, playing their first ODIs that year, they qualified for the 1996 and 2014 Cricket World Cups. Other ODI matches were played in the 2004 and 2008 Asia Cup tournaments. In 2014 the UAE gained ODI status through to 2018. UAE’s U19s played their first ICC World Cup in 2014, when the UAE hosted the international tournament. UAE’s U19s recently competed in 2015’s ACC Premier Tournament. UAE’s women’s team competed in the 2007 ACC Women’s Tournament and has subsequently continued to promote women’s participation in the game. The Women’s team is currently champion of the recently introduced GCC T20 Women’s Championship. Over a million Emiratis live in UAE, and the Emirati Development Programme forms an important part of Emirates Cricket’s strategic plan in growing the game. The UAE National squad currently comprises of three Emirati Nationals and it’s the aim of the Emirati Development Programme to ensure that there will be a steady integration of National players available for selection, in all forms of the game, in the future. The ECB now has the resources to take professional coaching into local schools and provide playing opportunities that have been limited before. A resource book of cricket in Arabic has been created and playing equipment provided to encourage and support this learning and development. In addition, the Programme has been bolstered by the employment of a dedicated Arabic speaking Development Officer who will be able to take the game forward.