Emirates Cricket Board has announced on Sunday (3 June) a new international T20 league sanctioned by International Cricket Council (ICC) to be staged in December and January. The Board will announce the franchise based tournament’s name at its official launch later this month in the UAE.   

The T20 tournament, which is officially sanctioned by the ICC for a period of 10 years, will have five franchises competing in 22 matches over 24 days in Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi in December-January. 

On the other hand, each team will have 16 players, comprising with six “international star players”, two emerging players from full member countries, three players from associate member teams, two “junior players”, and three UAE cricketers in the squad.

As per reports in Gulf News, David East, CEO of the Emirates Cricket Board, stated, “Our firm aim is for this event to take the sport to all corners of the UAE and to develop cricket at a grassroots level initially in - Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman and Ras Al Khaima. This will not be just another T20 tournament; it will be a true international festival of sport and the hottest cricket ticket in the UAE.”

Meanwhile, Zayed Abbas, ECB Board Member and Official Spokesperson said, “We are confident that this new event will play a big role in growing the game, inspiring, promoting and developing the sport in order to add to the already world-leading UAE cricketing and sporting landscape.”

ECB also confirmed that they already have the support of ICC’s six board members including England & Wales, Ireland, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, New Zealand and the West Indies for the tournament.