20 teams in fray for title at Ramadan T20 in Abu Dhabi

Event set to begin on Thursday with 47 fixtures to be played

Inam Ul Haq, Anil Kapur, Wajahat Husain, Ankush Badi, and David East at the Press conference to announce the Ramadan T20 Tournament in Abu Dhabi. — KT photo by Nezar Balout

Abu Dhabi — Five new teams are in the fray for the Ace International presents Pan Global Group Ramadan T20 Trophy, organised by the Abu Dhabi Cricket Council (ADCC). ADAC, Environment Agency, Lions CC, Punjab Lions and Hexa Oil & Gas are the new teams, who will be participating in the tournament.

Also, there has been an increase in prize money with the winners now set to get richer by Dh30,000. Previously, it was Dh20,000. The runners-up will get Dh15,000.

Twenty teams are participating in the annual tournament and have been split into four groups. The tournament is set to begin this Thursday and a total of 47 fixtures will be played.

“The Ramadan tournament is possibly the most followed in the UAE and more so in Abu Dhabi. We will complete a decade hosting the Ramadan cricket. During this month, what better way than channelling in the youth towards a healthy living by playing cricket. It is also a better way to promote the game,” Wajahat Husain, president of the Abu Dhabi Cricket Council, said at a press conference.

“We always have a 20-team field like every year. Despite the heat, we still get these many teams,” Wajahat added. Meanwhile, David East, the CEO of the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) continues to be amazed by the fact that cricket is still played in such temperatures.

“This is my third summer in the UAE and from where I come from, summer is 25 degrees. When it becomes 30 degrees, we deem it too hot to play cricket. But here, it is played in such fearsome temperatures. It shows the passion that they have for the sport and that they still continue to play it,” said East. Group A consists of One Stop Tourism, Lifeline Hospital, UBL, ADAC and Colombo Lions. Group B has Alubond Tigers, Al Fahim, ADNOC, Interface Transworld and ECB Green. Group C has AD Yard, Hexa Oil & Gas, NMC, Multiplex and Al Fara’a. ADCB, Environment Agency, Haad, Etihad Airways and Punjab Lions are in Group D.

Two games will be played every evening after Iftar. The tournament will be played under the floodlights of the Zayed Cricket Stadium. Each team shall comprise of a squad of 18 players. Overseas players will be allowed to play without any restrictions to enhance the competitiveness of the tournament. However, to qualify to play the final, a player must have played at least one match before the final.

james@khaleejtimes.com