edited by: Amrit Santlani
Last Update: January 12, 2023, 12:47 PM IST
Gulf Giants head coach Andy Flower addressing his players (Gulf Giants Twitter)
Gulf Giants will begin their ILT20 league campaign against Abu Dhabi Knight Riders on January 15.
inaugural dp World The International T20 League begins in the UAE from January 13, with all six franchises finalizing their preparations ahead of the first match of the season.
Gulf Giants coach Andy Flower is optimistic about his team’s prospects as they gear up to take on Abu Dhabi Knight Riders on January 15 at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.
The Adani Sportsline-owned franchise will be captained by James Vince and their squad includes world-class talents like Shimron Hetmyer, Chris Jordan, Chris Lynn, David Wiese and Liam Dawson.
Ghaffar, who has coached some of the best players in the world during his previous stint, relies on his powerful hitting batsmen as well as talented ‘mystery’ spinners.
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“Obviously we’re happy with the composition of the team right now because it’s the team we’ve put together,” Flower said.
He continued, “I think we have all our bases covered and we also have a great leader in James Vince, who I have worked with in the past.”
He further added that the batting unit looks strong and is loaded with power hitters. “We have a lot of exciting talent, Chris Lynn has been looking very good at the moment in the recent Big Bash. We also have strength in the middle order in Hetmyer, Wiese and Overton,” Andy said.
The former England coach was banking on his spinners given the success wrist spinners have had in Abu Dhabi and Dubai because of the big boundaries.
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“We’ve got two wrist spinners and I’m looking forward to seeing how they bowl because they’ve got some mystery in them,” Flower said.
With the Gulf Giants having a good mix of international stars as well as local talent, coach Ayan expects promising youngsters like Afzal Khan to shine on the big stage.
“I am also very excited to see how the UAE players perform not only in Adani’s Gulf Giants but across all teams. Ayan Afzal Khan is a promising all-rounder and it is a good opportunity for young players like him to challenge themselves.”
Gulf Giants Team: James Vince (c), Shimron Hetmyer, Chris Jordan, Chris Lynn, Tom Banton, Dominic Drakes, David Wiese, Liam Dawson, Jamie Overton, Qais Ahmed, Richard Gleeson, Ollie Pope, Rehan Ahmed, CP Rizwan, Ayan Afzal Khan, Sanchit Sharma, and Ashwanth Walthappa.
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