Reports: 677 players have registered for the Lanka Premier League 2021 players' draft

The second edition of the Lanka Premier League looks good to go as of now. As of Saturday, reports from Sri Lanka suggest that 677 players from all over the world have registered for the players’ draft. It has also been reported that big stars in world cricket, such as Andre Russell, Dawid Malan, Chris Gayle, Faf du Plessis, Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Malik and many others have registered for the draft. 

The 2021 season of the Lanka Premier League was supposed to be played in July-August but it was postponed due to the unavailability of foreign players. The fact that the Hundred and the Caribbean Premier League was also going to be held in that period might have played a role. There have been some issues with the teams as well. 

In its inaugural season, the LPL had five teams. In June 2021, two of those teams, Colombo Kings and Dambulla Vikings were terminated due to financial issues. In the following month, another team, Jaffna Stallions were also terminated. Dambulla got new owners and were renamed Dambulla Giants. Jaffna too was renamed as Jaffna Kings. 

Lanka Premier League 2021 will be entirely played in Hambantota once again

According to the reports on Cricwire, the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has revealed that the LPL player draft will be held on October 29, 2021. The tournament is planned to begin on December 4 and will see 23 matches during its run. All the matches will be played at the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium in Hambantota.

The final will be played on 23rd December 2021. The same report also stated that 677 players in total have registered for the draft. Out of that, around 380 have been stated to be local talents. A lot of players usually register for the drafts but the availability can’t be confirmed ahead of time. Generally, players get picked and then reveal whether they would be able to join the tournament or not.

Last season, Gayle, du Plessis, and Lasith Malinga were among a few players who had pulled out of the tournament after the draft had happened. It was previously expected that there could be a sixth team in the LPL 2021, but that seems unlikely for now. 

Check the latest updates of the Lanka Premier League schedule, Lanka Premier League Teams and Squads, Lanka Premier League Points Table, and more on CricTracker.