The inagural edition of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) T20 tournament will be held from November 14 to December 6 this year, according to the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC). The Island board had announced an LPL back in 2018, however, which was cancelled due to lack of interest. Previous board members tried to organise major T20 leagues in earlier past years but managed to host only one tournament 2012 Sri Lanka Premier League which was affected by poor crowds and corruption rumours.
The LPL was initially scheduled to take place between August 28 to September 20 but had to be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The tournament will be played at three international venues — Rangiri Dambulla International Cricket Stadium, Pallekele International Cricket Stadium and Suriyawewa Mahinda Rajapakse International Cricket Stadium.
Sri Lanka Cricket To Officially Launch League From Early November
Five teams will compete in 23 matches in LPL over a period 15 days. The five teams are named after Colombo, Kandy, Galle, Dambulla and Jaffna districts. In July, 70 overseas players have shown interest to participate in domestic professional T20 league. The teams participating are comprised of Colombo Lions, Dambulla Hawks, Galle Gladiators, Jaffna Cobras and Kandy Tuskers.
“Sri Lanka Cricket expects to officially launch the eagerly awaited Sri Lanka Premier League T20 cricket tournament in early November,” the SLC said in a statement.
The player draft for Lanka Premier League consisted of 56 international players mostly from Australia and Pakistan besides 107 local players. The overseas players included Shakib Al Hasan, David Miller, Mitchell Marsh, Aaron Finch, James Faulkner, Brad Hogg, Abdul Razzaq, Chris Lynn, Marlon Samuels, Chris Gayle and Shoaib Malik to name a few.
Lanka Premier League Will Prove Opportunity For Fans To Watch Quality Cricket
In the inaugural Lanka Premier League 2020, 93 international cricketers like England’s world cup winning pacer Liam Plunkett, New Zealander Tim Southee, Pakistan’s Mohammad Hafeez and West Indian Dwayne Smith have shown their interest to participate.
“The tournament will not only create a platform for local players to develop their skills by playing side by side with world-class players, but will also provide an opportunity for Sri Lankan cricket fans to watch a quality cricket tournament,” the organisers said.
Reports claim 30 international cricketers (six per franchise) and five coaches will be selected while a pool of 130 local players will be available to the franchises to select from in LPL 2020.