Four franchises – Gujarat Giants owned by Adani Sportsline, GMR Sport’s India Capitals, Manipal Group’s Manipal Tigers and Bhilwara Kings by Bhilwara Group – plus a combined wallet 32 crore to select 59 players from the draft for the upcoming version of Legends League Cricket (LLC).
The draft includes 79 cricketers and each team has a wallet 8 crore each. Each team will have three more days to submit their final roster.
“Among the teams, Manipal Tigers spent the most money 6.9 crore and have one wallet left 1.08 crore. They are closely watched by the Capitals of India as they spend 6.3 crore and Gujarat Giants spent 5.51 crore on their stars. Bhilwara Kings save the most when they spend 5.62 crore. They’ve all made reasonable spending, the mix of players looks great and it will be interesting to see what they do on the pitch. I wish everyone the best of luck,” said Raman Raheja, the tournament’s CEO and co-founder.
Teams have chosen their captain and have the opportunity to choose an additional player in their own way.
The Manipal Tigers have included former Australian speed sensation Brett Lee in their squad while Gujarat chose their homegrown hero and former Indian football goalkeeper Parthiv Patel. The Indian capital named Ravi Bopara even as the Bhilwara Kings chose Yusuf Pathan, who will now have a chance to team up with his brother Irfan in the tournament.
The Gujarat Giants, alongside Patel, they chose Sri Lankan spinner Ajantha Mendis and former New Zealand captain and left hand spinner Daniel Vettori. West Indies smasher Lendl Simmons will most likely open with captain Virender Sehwag at the top while Mitchell McClenaghan will lead the speed bowling.
“It was a hot draft today with the Gujarat Giants securing the tentative roster for the upcoming season. On the one hand, former Indian opener Virender Sehwag will be the team captain and on the other hand, top hitter and runner Parthiv Patel from Gujarat will invigorate the game even more. ever,” said Satyam Trivedi, head of Adani Sportsline.
Another Australian speedster, Mitchell Johnson, was selected by India Capitals. The left-handed fast pitcher will be assisted by former British track and field athlete Liam Plunkett. The team will also see former South Africa captain and all-powerful legend Jacques Kallis wear their jersey while Ross Taylor will carry out batting duties with captain Gautam Gambhir.
“I am really pleased with the squad that India Capitals has put on the table,” said Gautam Gambhir, captain of the team.
In addition to Lee, Manipal also chose the gyro Muttiah Muralidharan. The former Sri Lankan off-spinner will have the opportunity to play with another off-spinner, Harbhajan Singh, who is also the team captain. Other Tigers top buys are former South African all-rounder Lance Klusener and former Sri Lankan table tennis goalkeeper Romesh Kaluwitherana, who have played key roles helping his country. He won the 1996 World Cup.
The entire process of the player sketching in virtual mode is both exciting and thrilling. Overall it was a good experience despite being virtual. We’re excited to be a part of this tournament and look forward to some great cricket matches,” said S Vaitheeswaran, VC and MD (MEMG) owner of the Manipal Tigers.
For Bhilwara, former all-rounder of Australia and 2015 ODI World Cup winner Shane Watson is the star of choice. In addition to him, the team also selected Sreesanth and Monty Panesar among others.
Irfan Pathan, captain of Bhilwara Kings said: “I am really confident that we can do well if we have all the players ready and they are suitable.
The tournament will be a four-team and one-match 16-match tournament. The tournament will kick off on September 16 at Eden Gardens in Kolkata and will be held in five different cities, including Lucknow, New Delhi, Cuttack and Jodhpur.
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