Hafeez, Southee among 93 International cricketers named for Lankan Premier League

Sri Lanka Cricket has decided to host the inaugural season of the Lankan Premier League (LPL) from August 28 to September 20. The T20 league will feature 23 matches among five teams which have been named after the cities of Colombo, Kandy, Galle, Dambulla and Jaffna.

Owing to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the matches will be played in a biosecure bubble in only four international venues namely Premadasa International Cricket Stadium, Rangiri Dambulla International Cricket Stadium, Pallekele International Cricket Stadium and Suriyawewa Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium.

According to a report by ‘Ceylon Today’, a total of 93 international cricketers have been listed for the 2020 edition of the Lankan Premier League. The list includes the likes of England’s World Cup-winning pacer Liam Plunkett, New Zealand seamer Tim Southee, Veteran Pakistan all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez and West Indies opener Dwayne Smith.

IPG responsible for the commencement of Lankan Premier League

The report also mentioned that a Dubai-based Sports broadcasting company, Innovative Production Group (IPG) has acquired total rights of the LPL for the next five years by paying USD two million annually.

“IPG has total rights over ground, production, franchises and TV rights of the tournament where they pay USD 2 million annually for the said rights,” the report read.

“…it’s now up to IPG and franchises to finalise their players via negotiations with the players, or any other suitable method, and SLC will not be further involved in the matter,” it added.

Also, the five franchises will be given a pool of 130 local players to select the players from. In addition, 30 international cricketers (six each per franchise) and five coaches will be selected for the league every year.

Speaking about the salary, an iconic Sri Lankan player would get a salary cap of USD 60,000. The other top cricketers would be in the range of USD 50,000 to 40,000 while the rest would fit into the USD 40,000 to 30,000 or USD 20,000 to 10,000 ranges depending on their stature. Meanwhile, The International players will be in the range of USD 10,000 to 60,000.

Participating in LPL can result in the players missing the first few days of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2020). The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) would be hosting the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League from September 19 to November 10 in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah.

Isuru Udana and Lasith Malinga are the only two Sri Lankan to be participating in the 2020 edition of IPL. While Malinga will be joining the camp of Mumbai Indians, Isuru would be making his debut in the cash-rich league this year with Royal Challengers Bangalore.