Masters Champions League (MCL), a new T20 league with retired legends, will be played across three stadiums in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2016 featuring retired legends like Brian Lara, Wasim Akram and Adam Gilchrist.
The franchise-based league will be made up of six teams in its first year, with a total of 90 players taking part — 15 members per squad. The players will all be former international cricketers, who are now retired from all forms of the professional sport.
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This tournament is completely different from the one that is being promoted by Tendulkar and Warne.
The MCL has been approved for a 10 year period by the Emirates Cricket Board, while the organiser and rights owner of the tournament, GM Sports, is also closely following the established guidelines set out by game’s governing body, the International Cricket Council (ICC).
The inaugural MCL matches are due to take place over two weeks in February, 2016. They will be played in the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium and Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
Lara, who joined the MCL, said: “I am thrilled and honoured to be taking part in what promises to be an exceptional display of competitive cricket. The UAE is a great location for a tournament like this to be based, with a big fan base in the country already and easy access for millions of other fans around the world.”
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