July 31 (News18) – Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan and New Zealand opener Martin Guptill are both interested in being a part of the Lanka Premier League (LPL).
A report in the Sri Lankan newspaper Daily News said that Pathan and Guptill are among 143 international players in the list for the tournament that will begin next month.
“There are about 143 overseas players in the list who are very keen to play in this tournament and now it is up to the respective franchises to select these cricketers,” a high ranking official at Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) told Daily News.
“We have also asked the local clubs to nominate two players for this event and so there would be a total of 48 top domestic players from the 24 Premier Clubs who would be eligible to represent the four franchises.
“In addition, we have a total 80 national players who are currently contracted with SLC and they will also be strong contenders to make it to the final squad.
“Some of the Premier Clubs have also named young promising players in the Under-23 and Under-19 category but altogether it is up to the four franchises to make a final decision in picking their squad.”
The tournament, which will consist of 23 matches, will be played in four stadiums: R. Premadasa Stadium, Dambulla Stadium, Pallekele Stadium and Mahinda Rajapaksa Stadium in Hambantota.
Franchise teams from the cities of Colombo, Kandy, Galle, Dambulla and Jaffna will partake in the league.
SLC, which had conceived the league in 2018, was earlier optimistic of conducting the event from August 8 to 22, pending government’s decision to open the country’s border for foreign arrivals.
