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T20 campus finals beckons

The winning team will represent the UAE at the Red Bull Campus Cricket World Finals in India next October.

Dubai — Varsity teams will have a chance to showcase their talents on a world stage at the first Red Bull Campus Cricket tournament to be hosted in the UAE, a Press release said.

The qualifiers for the competition will take place on March 4 and 5 at The Sevens Grounds, where cricketers from 16 local universities will lock horns to compete for their spot in a semi-final and final berth on March 20, set to take place alongside the Emirates Airline Twenty20. The winning team will represent the UAE at the Red Bull Campus Cricket World Finals in India next October.

Now in its fourth edition, the Red Bull Campus Cricket World Finals is an annual event that brings together the best among the best in university cricket from cricket-playing nations around the world. For the first year since its inception, the tournament will see the UAE join other cricketing nations like Australia, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, West Indies, England and Bangladesh.

Matthew Jackson, Tournament Director and Managing Director of Sport Arabia Worldwide Ltd, the promoters of the event said: “Both MCC and Sport Arabia are keen exponents of University Cricket and so we are very pleased to be also hosting the finals of the UAE Red Bull Campus Cricket tournament at the Emirates Airline Twenty20 day, where the University players will get to rub shoulders with the international stars.

“We are so pleased to have the star studded MCC side take part in the Emirates Airline Twenty20 for what will be the fourth year. The tournament will not only be watched by a large enthusiastic crowd in Dubai, but will also be televised in over 100 countries worldwide to an audience of approximately 1.5m, giving MCC the opportunity to promote the Spirit of Cricket message to a global audience,” added Jackson.

Brendon Kuruppu, former Sri Lanka international player and official spokesperson for Red Bull Campus Cricket, said: “The Red Bull Campus Cricket tournament is a proven tournament across the global and it was only a matter of time before it was introduced in the UAE. It is a proven, credible and competitive.”

 international university led cricket platform. As we have seen from the international games that have been played in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah cricket is massive in the country and we are confident that it will be a great success.

“The aim of Red Bull Campus Cricket is to provide promising cricketers an opportunity to turn their dreams of becoming professional cricketers into a reality. Red Bull Campus Cricket is a platform for university cricket and aims to give wings to the careers of future cricketing superstars,” added Kuruppu.

The qualifying matches will see the participation of varsity teams from American University of Dubai, Manipal, Bits Pilani, Heriot Watt, American University of Sharjah, Skyline University, Wollongong University, Middlesex University, Emirates University, Bolton University, Amity University, Canadian University of Dubai, American College of Dubai, Madonna University in RAK, Ajman University of Science and Technology and Abu Dhabi University.