Dubai: Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan, who is hailed as one of the world’s finest leg-spinners, will be in action for Maratha Arabians in the second edition of the T10 Cricket League.
Speaking to Gulf News, Parvez Khan, the co-owner of the Maratha Arabians team, said: “We have picked Rashid Khan because he is not only one of the finest leg-spinners in the game but also the darling of the Afghanistan fans in UAE.”
Khan joins Australia’s left-handed all-rounder James Faulkner, who was picked during the mini draft of the league on Monday night. The franchise also retained players from the previous season such as England’s hard-hitter Alex Hales, West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo and Kamran Akmal, the Pakistan wicketkeeper.
Commenting on his inclusion, Rashid Khan said; “I am extremely excited to be playing for Maratha Arabians in the second season of the T10 League. After having played Twenty20 cricket all over the world, I was looking forward to a challenge. Playing the T10 format is the perfect step up for me. I am looking forward to playing the world’s shortest format alongside some iconic players.”
Parvez of Pacific Ventures, who also launched the Mahendra Singh Dhoni Cricket Academy, co-owns the team along with Bollywood Actor-Director Sohail Khan and Ali Tumbi of Aqua Properties. This team has Wasim Akram as head coach and the franchise is managed by Dubai-based Petromann Events. All the players are delighted to have Akram as their coach as he is an inspiration for youngsters in the team especially pacers, who can get invaluable tips from him.
“Rashid is the youngest player to top the ICC Player Rankings for bowlers in ODIs. I believe that Rashid will be a great asset to the team and we will have an extremely strong bowling attack,”
Co-owners Sohail and Ali Tumbi feels that Rashid and Faulkner will strengthen the bowling attack.
Ali Tumbi went on to remark: “Maratha Arabians is an excellent marriage of two different regions and cultures. The franchise represents the warriors of two historic regions and will fight for every inch on the cricket field during the tournament.”
