Dubai: Ahead of the third season of the ILT20, 69 players have been retained by their respective teams including Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Nicholas Pooran, David Warner, and Mohammad Amir. The third season of the tournament will be played from January 11 to February 9, 2025, in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah. The window for retaining players was opened on June 1 with the teams given two weeks to submit the list of the retained players.
Defending champions MI Emirates have retained captain Pooran, Dwayne Bravo, Akeal Hosein, Kieron Pollard, and Fazalhaq Farooqi. Trent Boult, who played for Emirates last season, has not been retained. Abu Dhabi Knight Riders have retained captain Narine and Russell, alongside players like David Willey, Charith Asalanka, Ali Khan, and Andries Gous from the USA.
Desert Vipers have retained Amir, Wanindu Hasaranga, Alex Hales, and Azam Khan. However, notable exclusions from their retention list are fast bowlers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Matheesha Pathirana.
Dubai Capitals, led by captain Warner, have retained key players including Rovman Powell, Sam Billings, and Jake Fraser-McGurk. England's Joe Root and Mark Wood, who were part of their squad last year, have not been retained. Gulf Giants have retained Shimron Hetmyer and captain James Vince, while USA's Saurabh Netravalkar and Afghanistan spinner Mujeeb Ur Rehman did not make the cut.
Sharjah Warriors have retained Kusal Mendis, captain Tom Kohler-Cadmore, and Johnson Charles among their eight retained players.
Each of the six franchises have retained two UAE players each. The UAE players retained for Season 3 include Aditya Shetty and Alishan Sharafu (Abu Dhabi Knight Riders), Ali Naseer and Tanish Suri (Desert Vipers), Haider Ali and Raja Akif (Dubai Capitals), Aayan Afzal Khan and Mohammad Zohaib Zubair (Gulf Giants), Muhammad Rohid Khan and Muhammad Waseem (MI Emirates), Junaid Siddique and Muhammad Jawadullah (Sharjah Warriors).
Teams can now sign new players in the ongoing player acquisition window which will stay open till 15 September. The franchises will also need to complete their quota of four UAE signings after the completion of the ILT20 development tournament which will be held in October. IANS
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