How Abu Dhabi T10 filtered through 800 cricketers to help eight teams pick the top players

 By K.R. Nayar 

Through a five-hour long players’ draft attended by cricketers turned coaches like Andy Flower, Lalchand Rajput, Azhar Mahmood and cricketer Shoaib Malik, all eight teams pick balanced squads for the contest due to be played from January 28 to February 6, 2021. Shaji Ul Mulk, Chairman of Abu Dhabi T10  speaks about the impact of the players' draft.

 

Shaji Ul Mulk, Chairman Abu Dhabi T10 at the players' draft

Cricketers wanting to play in the Abu Dhabi T10 tournament have been on the rise, and over 800 players registered for its fourth edition expressing their interest to play in this tournament. 

Speaking to krbuzz.blogspot.com, Shaji Ul Mulk, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi T10  after the players’ draft held at the Oaks Hotel, Dubai,  remarked: “The fact that we now have a large number of cricketers registered to play in the T10 tournament reveals the popularity of the T10 league. This year we have over 800 players registered.”

This format has become a huge attraction with its edge of the seat thrillers, resulting in big crowds turning up for all the matches. With the T10 organisers strengthening their television coverage to reach out to more countries, the popularity of the event has also increased.

“To make the players’ draft manageable, we brought down the total players from 800 to 600. The outcome of the draft is fantastic. We have an excellent pool of players, much stronger than I expected,” added Shaji. 

Abu Dhabi T10 flags flutter at the entrance to the Oaks Hotel. Photo by K.R. Nayar 

The players’ draft was a colourful event with huge cut-outs of all the icons players placed interestingly all around the venue. All team owners and their coaches deliberated over the pool of players available at their disposal to finally decide their team composition. The five-hour long draft ended with all teams picking their players with the hope that they would ultimately lift the trophy. 

Overseeing the proceedings were Matt Boucher, Abu Dhabi Cricket Chief Executive Officer, and Haroon Lorgat, Director, Strategy & Development, Abu Dhabi T10, and former Chief Executive Officer of the International Cricket Council (ICC).  Mubashshir Usmani, Secretary-General of the Emirates Cricket Board was also present.

Shaji Ul Mulk appreciated the efforts that the team owners put in to pick the right players they needed for their campaign: “All team owners have made sure that they have a well-balanced unit. A lot of thought has gone into making their choices. Be it batting, bowling and wicket keeping, everyone has done a detailed study before making their decisions,” he said.

Andy Flower and Azhar Mahmood of Delhi Bulls arrive for the players' draft. Photo by K.R. Nayar

Shaji feels that the determination of all the teams could be seen from the turn out of their coaches and captains for the draft. “Despite the pandemic and related travel issues, coaches like Andy Flower made sure they attended. Players like Shoaib Malik and owners like Sohail Khan flew in for the draft. Coaches like Aaqib Javed who could not fly in for the draft were on zoom during the draft process.”

Former Indian opener and coach Lalchand Rajput and Pakistan allrounder and renowned bowling coach Azhar Mahmood were also present. 

Maratha Arabians picked the first player of the draft in Pakistan allrounder Mohammad Hafeez. They also went on to pick Pravin Tambe, who even at the age of 49, is hailed as the most difficult bowler to tackle in shorter formats of the game. Tambe was recently picked to play in the Caribbean Premier League too. Maratha Arabians, who are the defending champions, have Shoaib Malik as their icon player.

This event is supported by the Emirates Cricket Board and sanctioned by the International Cricket Council . 

Following are the players drafted into the teams:

Group A

Team                  : Maratha Arabians

Icon Player        : Shoaib Malik

Team                : Mohammad Hafeez, Laurie Evans, Mosaddek Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Pravin Tambe, Ishan Malhotra, Muktar Ali, Amjad Khan, Abdul Shakoor, Maroof Merchant, Sompal Kami, Syed Shah

 

Team                : Bangla Tigers 

Icon Player        : Isuru Udana

Team                : Andre Fletcher, Tom Moores, Qais Ahmad, Chirag Suri, Johnson Charles, David Wiese, Mohammad Irfan, Afif Hossain, Adam Hose, Karim Janat, Aryan Lakra, Fazal Haque, Noor Ahmad, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Mahedi Hasan

 

Team                 : Delhi Bulls

Icon Player        : Dwayne Bravo

Team                : Ali Khan, Mohammad Nabi, Dushmantha Chameera, Sherfane Rutherford, Evin Lewis, Dasun Shanaka, Adam Lyth, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Fidel Edwards, Shiraz Ahmed, Kashif Daud, Waqar Salamkheil, Nyeem Young, Ahmad Butt

 

Team                 : Northern Warriors

Icon Player        : Andre Russell

Team                : Rayad Emrit, Nicholas Pooran, Lendl Simmons, Wahab Riaz, Junaid Siddique, Rovman Powell, Fabian Allen, Nuwan Pradeep, Aamer Yamin, Brandon King, Waheed Ahmed, Maheesh Theekshana, Ansh Tandon

 

Group B

Team                 : Deccan Gladiators

Icon Player        : Sunil Narine

Team                : Kieron Pollard, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Zahoor Khan, Colin Ingram, Mohammad Shahzad, Wanindu Hasaranga, Lahiru Kumara, Azam Khan, Ravi Rampaul, Prashant Gupta, Zeeshan Zameer, Hamdan Tahir, Hafeez-ur-Rehman, Imran Tahir, Imtiyaz Ahmed

 

Team                : Qalandars

Icon Player        : Shahid Afridi

Team                : Samit Patel, Phil Salt, Chris Jordan, Sultan Ahmed, Tom Banton, Sohail Tanvir, Asif Ali, Hasan Ali, Sohail Akhtar, Sharjeel Khan, Fayyaz Ahmed, Azmatullah Omarzai, Maaz Khan, Khurshid Anwar, Ben Dunk

 

Team                : Team Abu Dhabi

Icon Player        : Chris Gayle

Team                : Rohan Mustafa, Luke Wright, Avishka Fernando, Hayden Walsh Jr, Chris Morris, Usman Shinwari, Naveen-ul-Haq, Obed McCoy, Najibullah Zadran, Ben Cox, Palaniapan Meiyappan, Leonardo Julien, Kushal Malla, Alex Hales

 

Team                : Pune Devils

Icon Player        : Thisara Pereira

Team                : Mohammad Amir, Hardus Viljoen, Chamara Kapugedera, Sam Billings, Ajantha Mendis, Devon Thomas, Darwish Rasooli, Nasir Hossain, Kennar Lewis, Asif Khan, Mohammad Boota, Dinesh Kumar, Vriitya Aravind, Karan KC, Munis Ansari