Team Abu Dhabi sign Livingstone, retain Gayle

Dubai - The tournament is set to be held at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi from November 19 to December 4

Team Abu Dhabi have stepped up preparations for the fifth iteration of the Abu Dhabi T10 by retaining the services of West Indies legend Chris Gayle and signing eye catching England batsman Liam Livingstone as the home side’s Icon Player.

The Players Draft was held on Thursday and each of the franchises have packed their sides with the most dependable and destructive international cricketers for the upcoming tournament which is set to be held at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi from November 19 to December 4.

Gayle, who this year became the first player in history to reach 14,000 runs in T20 cricket alone, lit up the Abu Dhabi T10’s fourth edition at the first attempt with a brutal 84 not out against Maratha Arabians in February.

Coming off just 22 balls, it is the kind of devastating innings fans all over the world have come to expect of the left-hander with two ICC Men’s T20 World Cup winners’ medals to his name. Meanwhile, Livingstone is quickly establishing himself in similar fashion and has emerged as one of the most exciting players in short-form cricket.

Defending champions Northern Warriors, which will be headlined by their icon player Chris Jordan, have acquired a fantastic combination of players which include Moeen Ali, Rovman Powell, Imran Tahir and Upul Tharanga, to name a few.

“It’s been very satisfying to see the growth of the league over the years,” said Shaji Ul Mulk, Chairman, T10 Sports Management.

“The success of any event depends on partnerships and the teams working on the event. The combination of our team, the Abu Dhabi government and Abu Dhabi Cricket is unbeatable. I am sure that this season will be even better than last season,” he added.

New Team Abu Dhabi coach, Paul Farbrace, is looking forward to working with both players that will form one of the most destructive top-orders in world cricket.

“Chris Gayle is box office,” said Farbrace. “When he walks into bat, people make sure they are there as he could do something so special, so stunning, in any game,” he added.

The UAE’s Rohan Mustafa, who was retained by Team Abu Dhabi, said: “It’s really nice to be retained by Team Abu Dhabi as I’ve had two good seasons with them, and it feels like it’s my own team. Paul Farbrace is a very good coach so taking experience from him will be great for us UAE players,” said Mustafa.

HOW THE SQUADS STACK UP:

> Northern Warriors: Chris Jordan (icon player), Moeen Ali, Rovman Powell, Imran Tahir, Upul Tharanga, Rayad Emrit, Reece Topley, Samit Patel, Kenar Lewis, Mithun Abhimanyu, Kaunain Abbas, Umair Ali, Rameez Shahzad, Josh Little, Abdul Wahid Bangalzai, Blessing Muzarabani, Ross Whiteley.

> Bangla Tigers: Faf du Plessis (icon player), Shahid Afridi, Mohammad Amir, James Faulkner, Benny Howell, Johnson Charles, Hazratullah Zazai, William George Jacks, Andre Fletcher, Qais Ahmad, Isuru Udana, Sabir Rao, Hassan Khalid, Matheesha Pathirana, William Smeed, Adam Lyth, Mohammad Saifuddin.

> Deccan Gladiators: Andre Russell (icon player), Evin Lewis, Tom Banton, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, David Wiese, Tymal Mills, Wanindu Hasaranga, Najibullah Zadran, Odean Smith, Rumman Raees, Ravi Bopara, Zahoor Khan, Sultan Ahmed, Izharulhaq Naveed, Nav Parbeja, Ryan Rickelton, Anwar Ali.

> Maratha Arabians: Nicholas Pooran (icon player), Yusuf Pathan, Fabian Allen, Dushmantha Chameera, Wahab Riaz, Azam Khan, Maheesh Theekshana, Darren Bravo, Dhananjaya Lakshan, Migael Pretorius, Mark Deyal, Muhammad Waseem, Junaid Siddique, Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, Chamika Karunaratne, Tion Webster.

> Team Abu Dhabi: Liam Livingstone (icon player), Chris Gayle, Marchant de Lange, Colin Ingram, Phil Salt, Paul Stirling, Obed McCoy, Danny Briggs, Jamie Overton, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fidel Edwards, Rohan Mustafa, Muhammad Farazuddin, Ahmad Daniyal Latif, Christopher Benjamin.

> Delhi Bulls: Jason Roy (icon player), Eoin Morgan, Dwayne Bravo, Ravi Rampaul, Adil Rashid, Sherfane Rutherford, Rilee Roscoe Rossouw, Dominic Drakes, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Romario Shepherd, Sohaib Maqsood, Shiraz Ahmed, Hafeez-ur-Rehman, Nyeem Young, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Akeal Hosein, Devon Thomas.