Daily Times

LAHORE: A total of 12 foreign players including eight from the United Kingdom, three from Afghanistan and one from Sri Lanka have arrived in Lahore to take part in the first edition of the Pakistan Junior League which begins at the Gaddafi Stadium Lahore on Thursday (October 6). The remaining 12 foreign players are expected to reach in the next two to three days. The local players will also arrive from their respective homes to Lahore over the weekend. The players that reached Lahore last night and this morning include Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar (Rawalpindi Raiders), Archie Lenham (Mardan Warriors), James Ross Wood (Hyderabad Hunters), Joseph Eckland (Gwadar Sharks), Ibrahim Masood (Hyderabad Hunters), Gabriel Gallman-Findlay (Bahawalpur Royals), George Thomas (Mardan Warriors), Luc Martin Benkenstein (Gwadar Sharks), Shevon Daniel (Gujranwala Giants), Thomas Aspinwall (Gujranwala Giants), Nangeyalia Kharotai (Bahawalpur Royals) and Olly Cox (Mardan Warriors).

The players expressed their excitement at playing the PJL in the presence of some of the greats of the game who would be working as mentors during the tournament. The mentor roster includes legends of the game Javed Miandad (league mentor), Imran Tahir (Bahawalpur Royals), Shoaib Malik (Gujranwala Giants), Sir Vivian Richards (Gwadar Sharks), Daren Sammy (Hyderabad Hunters), Shahid Afridi (Mardan Warriors) and Colin Munro (Rawalpindi Raiders).

The teams will practice for four days leading up to the tournament opener between Gujranwala Giants and Mardan Warriors which will be played from 2000 next Thursday. The 19-match tournament will be played on a single league basis with the six teams competing against each other once. The top four sides will compete in the playoffs, the final will be played on Friday (October 21).