From Colombo Super Kings to Jaffna Sunrisers: Lankan Premier League teams' names heavily inspired by IPL franchises

Sri Lanka is all set to stage a multi-team T20 league this month as the Lanka Premier League is slated to start on August 28th. It has been confirmed that the tournament will end on September 20th but the Sri Lankan board is yet to announce an official schedule of the fixtures.

A total of five teams from Colombo, Kandy, Galle, Dambulla and Jaffna will be vying the clinch the title in the franchise-based tournament. To attract more fans and to garner attention, the states are also going to have a unique name before plying their trade in the league.

There has been no confirmation yet but according to reports, the teams’ names are Colombo Super Kings, Galle Lions, Kandy Royals, Jaffna Sunrisers and Dambulla Capitals. All the five names are inspired by the names of popular IPL franchises. Colombo have taken a cue from Chennai Super Kings while Galle have been inspired by Gujarat Lions. Kandy, Jaffna and Dambulla have also come up with names resembling Rajasthan Royals, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Delhi Capitals.

70 cricketers have been listed for Lanka Premier League

It will be interesting to see how the aforementioned IPL franchises react to Sri Lankan teams taking up such names. A total of 70 cricketers have been listed for the tournament and the list includes names like Liam Plunkett, Dwayne Smith and Tim Southee. As reported by ESPNcricinfo, the tournament’s draft is likely to take place soon where franchises will be in a tussle to reap gains.

A few Sri Lankan stars, who are a part of IPL 2020, will miss the initial phase of the cash-rich league in the UAE. With LPL running till September 20, Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore will have to wait for a while before Lasith Malinga and Isuru Udana fly down to the Middle East country.

The thirteenth edition of the IPL, in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic, has been shifted to the UAE this year. Considering the current situation across the globe, all players will be in a bio-secure bubble in the UAE.

According to reports, former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan was also among the players who were listed for Lanka Premier League. However, he had denied the rumours on Twitter, saying he hasn’t confirmed availability for any league. “I wish to play T20 Leagues around the world in future, but at this stage, I haven’t confirmed my availability in any Leagues,” Irfan had clarified.

Here’s how Twitter reacted: