Doha (Qatar), Mar 9 (IANS): India Maharajas will take on Asia Lions in the opening match of the third edition of the Legends League Cricket (LLC) Masters at the Asian Town Cricket Stadium in Doha, Qatar on Friday.
The third edition of the LLC Masters, with top legendary cricketers who have carved out many historic moments, gives fans an opportunity to watch their heroes of yesteryears.
The glorious journey of this event since its inception has attracted huge television viewership and also sponsorship support. Three teams -- World Giants, India Maharajas and Asia Lions -- include the cream of legendary players and are all set to battle it out to be crowned the champions on March 20.
Speaking ahead of the tournament and commenting on the growth of LLC over the years, Raman Raheja, co-founder and CEO of Legends League Cricket said, "Legends League Cricket has grown immensely since its inception. In the first season, we had 59 cricketers. Season 2 saw nearly 80 cricketers and now as we enter the third season with Skyexch.net LLC Masters we have a plethora of options to zero in on 50 cricketers to be a part of the tournament across the three teams.
"The greatest thing we have achieved this season is the addition of recently retired cricketers like Suresh Raina, Murali Vijay, Mohammad Amir, and Aaron Finch among others. It is a clear testament to the fact that LLC did create a strong demand and fans want to see them back on the field. With such positive developments, we are surely expecting the league to be much more competitive," he said.
This edition will witness huge participation of Indian cricketers like allrounder Irfan Pathan, who scored 225 runs and bagged 11 wickets from seven matches in the second edition, along with his brother Yusuf Pathan who has 100 of 20 balls under his belt in the same tournament.
Former India openers Gautam Gambhir and Murali Vijay, match winner Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh, wicketkeeper-batter Robin Uthappa, and pacers S. Sreesanth, Stuart Binny, Ashoke Dhinda and the evergreen Mohammad Kaif.
Former Pakistan captains Shahid Afridi, Misbah-Ul-Haq and Shoaib Akhtar along with pacers Mohammad Amir, Sohail Tanvir and Abdul Razzaq will once again be seen in action.
West Indies' limited over cricket stars Chris Gayle and Ricardo Powell; Australia's Brett Lee, all-rounder Shane Watson; former skipper Aaron Finch; along with South Africa's Jacques Kallis, and Hashim Amla will participate in the event.
New Zealand's Ross Taylor, Paul Collingwood and Monty Panesar of England, Sri Lanka's Tillakaratne Dilshan, Thisara Perera and Dilhara Fernando, along with Ireland's Kevin O'Brien and Afghanistan's Asghar Afghan are all set to light up the event.
Thus, from 59 legends in season one, the event has grown and the third edition has seen interest from more than 80 legends thereby adding more glitter to the event.
Former Indian skipper and head coach Ravi Shastri is the League Commissioner and former Indian woman cricketer Jhulan Goswami is the Women Empowerment Ambassador.
Eight matches are scheduled for the series, and all of them will be played at the Asia Town Cricket Stadium.
The live broadcast for fans around the world will commence at 8:00 p.m. IST (5:30 p.m. AST, local Qatar time) on the Star Sports Network. Fans can stream the matches on Disney+ Hotstar and FanCode as well.
Schedule:
March 10: India Maharajas v/s Asia Lions, Asian Town Cricket Stadium, Doha, Qatar
March 11: World Giants v/s India Maharajas, Asian Town Cricket Stadium, Doha, Qatar
March 12: Rest Day
March 13: Asia Lions v/s World Giants, Asian Town Cricket Stadium, Doha, Qatar
March 14: Asia Lions v/s India Maharajas, Asian Town Cricket Stadium, Doha, Qatar
March 15: India Maharajas v World Giants, Asian Town Cricket Stadium, Doha, Qatar
March 16: World Giants v/s Asia Lions, Asian Town Cricket Stadium, Doha, Qatar
March 17: Rest Day
March 18: Eliminator, 2nd Position v/s 3rd Position, Asian Town Cricket Stadium, Doha, Qatar
March 19: Rest Day
March 20: Final, Asian Town Cricket Stadium, Doha, Qatar.