DUBAI: The UAE’s eight-most promising and talented under-23 players who showcased their talent at the recently concluded ILT20 Development Tournament were among the 13 players picked by the DP World ILT20 franchises for the tournament’s Season 2 that will be staged in January and February.
All remaining 13 Season 2 spots for UAE players were filled through an online player selection process.
Earlier this year, a total of 11 UAE players had been retained by the franchises. Each of the six DP World ILT20 franchise squad needs to have a minimum of four UAE players.
At the selection process on Friday, the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders selected batter Alishan Sharafu and spinner Aditya Shetty. Sharafu represented Sharjah Warriors in DP World ILT20 Season 1. The right-hander scored 202 runs in the ILT20 Development Tournament. Shetty took eight wickets in the event.
Karthik Meiyappan and Aryan Lakra were chosen by Desert Vipers. Meiyappan was part of the Warriors squad in DP World ILT20 Season 1. He claimed two wickets in two appearances in the ILT20 Development Tournament. Lakra scored 100 runs in his six games.
The Dubai Capitals who had three out of the four UAE slots vacant, chose Rahul Chopra, Haider Ali, and Vriitya Aravind.
Aravind played for MI Emirates in DP World ILT20 Season 1. Chopra was the second-most prolific run-getter in the ILT20 Development Tournament, hitting 269 runs. Haider was the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with 15.
Reigning champions Gulf Giants chose big-hitting opener Usman Khan and leg-spinner Mohammed Zohaib Zubair. In six ILT20 Development Tournament games, Zubair took eight wickets. Usman scored 204 runs.
MI Emirates opted for batter Asif Khan and all-rounder Mohammed Rohid Khan. Asif was the top run-getter in the ILT20 Development Tournament. The UAE batting stalwart scored 383 runs in seven innings. Rohid took four wickets in the tournament.
Seasoned UAE batter Basil Hameed who represented MI Emirates in Season 1 was picked by Warriors alongside all-rounder Nilansh Keswani. Basil scored 72 runs in three development tournament innings. Keswani took 10 wickets.
The players now join the 11 UAE players that were retained by the franchises in the retentions list announced in August.
The 11 players that were retained by the franchises include: Ali Naseer (Desert Vipers), Aayan Afzal Khan (Gulf Giants), Junaid Siddique (Sharjah Warriors), Matiullah (Abu Dhabi Knight Riders), Mohammed Waseem (MI Emirates), Muhammad Jawadullah (Sharjah Warriors), Raja Akif (Dubai Capitals), Rohan Mustafa (Desert Vipers), Sabir Ali (Abu Dhabi Knight Riders), Sanchit Sharma (Gulf Giants), and Zahoor Khan (MI Emirates).
All six squads for the DP World ILT20 Season 2 are now complete. The teams can still replace an injured or unavailable player leading up to and during the tournament.
