Sharjah: A brand of cricket that is even more fast, furious and exciting is in the offing with the Heera T10 Cricket League commencing on Thursday and continuing until December 17 at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium. The UAE will enter the history books by hosting this unique tournament, which will be the shortest form of the game yet.
Cricketers and fans getting can’t wait to get in on the action and are calling it by different names. Some call it ‘bang bang’ cricket while some feel it will be ‘boom boom’ cricket — the way Pakhtoons team captain Shahid Afridi played cricket and went on to win the hearts of millions of fans.
All the international cricketers in the six teams — Colombo Kings, Bengal Tigers, Maratha Arabians, Punjab Legends, Pakthoons and Kerala Kings — have geared up for the action after intense training at the different UAE venues.
Gulf News spoke to a cross section of the leading cricketers who are all ready to set the Sharjah Stadium ablaze during the tournament.
West Indies’ two-time T20 World Cup winning captain, Darren Sammy, who is a member of the Bengal Tigers, said: “This format will be a breakthrough in cricket. It may set the tone and show the way forward for cricket to the world stage and world events like Olympics. Ninety minutes of high action should be entertaining. T20 had shown how entertaining it could be and cricket, now reduced to 10 overs, can be an exciting concept.”
England’s tall and aggressive batsman Alex Hales, who will play for Maratha Arabians, feels that the format will be a first for everyone. “I’ve never played an official 10-over game before but the same goes for the rest of us, so we will approach it like T20 style.”
When asked how he plans to shape his innings, the six-feet-four-inch tall Hales said: “Being tall with long arms helps, so I think this will help me to hit the ball.”
Getting ready to make a hard-hitting presence is another batsman known around the world as ‘Killer Miller’. When South Africa’s David Miller, who will play for Bengal Tigers, was asked how he would approach this format, he said: “It has to be bang-bang cricket. I’ve never played 10-over cricket but it is going to be very fast and so everyone can expect lots of fours and sixes. For spectators, it will go a long way because they can watch different teams playing on one night within a short space of time. I think it is going to be very popular.”
Legendary pacer Waqar Younis, the coach of Bengal Tigers, said that dot balls will be vital in this format. “Bowler will have to aim to bowl more dot balls because dot balls can create pressure. Good yorkers will be useful. Teams batting first will aim to get over 10 runs an over and hence any score over 110 will be a good total.”
Eoin Morgan, captain of Kerala Kings, feels T10 will create a huge impact. “When T20 began to be played, it created an impact on other formats of the game. If T10 format takes off well, it will surely impact the other formats of the game.”
Shoaib Malek, captain of Punjab Legends team, urged everyone to back T10. “It is a new format that is here to entertain cricket fans and we should embrace it rather than question it.”
Incidentally, Pakistan’s fearsome pacer Shoaib Akhtar, who attended Bengal Tigers’ function to felicitate the players on Tuesday night, said: “A new era of cricket will begin through T10 cricket. I am glad to be here and it is going to be a different type of cricket we are all going to witness and it will be great fun.”
Speaking on behalf of the all West Indies players in this tournament, West Indies all-rounder Darren Bravo said: “West Indies players are known for their Calypso type of players and I am sure we are going to put a smile on each and every single person here.”
