Brad Hodge and Kumar Sangakkara added 105 runs for the unbroken third wicket stand as Gemini Arabians notched up their second successive victory in the Masters Champions League T20 tournament beating Leo Lions by eight wickets, in Dubai, on Saturday.
Riding on a superb all-round show, Gemini Arabians registered a massive 78-run win over Libra Legends in the opening match of the Masters Champions League Twenty20 tournament at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Friday. Put into bat, Gemini Arabians posted a massive 234 for three in their allotted 20 overs and in response the Libra Legends could manage only 156/8. The hero of the Gemini win was the pair of Kumar Sangakkara (86 runs 43 balls, 6x4, 7x6) and opener Richard Levi (62 runs, 43 balls, 4x4, 3x6). Together, they stitched together an 84-run partnership for the second wicket after skipper Virender Sehwag (21) got the tournament off to a rollicking start with a six off the first ball.
The tournament is set to be played in Dubai and also at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium in Sharjah.
The CEO of a fledgling Twenty20 cricket league for retired greats in the UAE on Friday promised its players will receive their final wages that were due more than two months ago and vowed the competition would return next year. The Masters Champions League (MCL), which boasted West Indies batsmen Brian Lara and Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan among its ranks, staged its maiden season in Dubai and Sharjah from Jan. 28-Feb. 13. The MCL sold six franchises for a combined $90 million, with each team named after an astrological sign. This sextet pledged about $5.5 million in player wages, but only one team - Gemini Arabians - has paid its players in full, MCL chief executive Zarah Shah told Reuters. The other teams' players are owed their final wage packet, which was due 30 days after the tournament finished, said Shah. Clubs receive a share of gate money, central sponsorship revenues and broadcast income, plus prize money, and are responsible for players' salaries.
India's limited overs captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni launched the ticket sales for the inaugural edition of Masters Champions League (MCL), as the brand ambassador of the tournament, with a special video message.
Former India captain Sourav Ganguly was on Tuesday named captain and ambassador of Libra Legends in the upcoming Masters Champions League to be played in Dubai and Sharjah from January 28 to February 13. Ganguly will lead a team which will have South African iconic all-rounder Jacques Kallis, left-arm spinner Nicky Boje, English spinner Graeme Swann, Aussie speedster Shaun Tait, spinner Brad Hogg, Netherlands allrounder Ryan ten Doeschate among others.
The Barge Ibis, a 2964 GRT vessel with a length of 65.58 metre and breadth of 32 metres, with 27 crew, was engaged in operations to prevent sea erosion,south of Old Port Mangalore.
Stating that he was forced to retire from international cricket in order to get a NOC to play in the Masters Champions League, veteran West Indies batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul has warned that such shabby treatment by selectors is a worrying sign for future cricketers.
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