Shoaib Akhtar, Shahid Afridi to play Legends League next month

Former Pakistan legends Shoaib Akhtar, Shahid Afridi have joined Legends League, which will be played in Al-Amerat Stadium in Oman.

Oman recently attained rights to host their inaugural domestic league after Oman co-hosted the recently concluded ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 along with Dubai, Sharjah, and Abu Dhabi as the other three venues.

The three Pakistani players will link up with other Pakistani players including Azhar Mahmood, Misbah-ul-Haq, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Yousuf, Umar Gul, and Younis Khan to form an 11-man team called the Asia Lions team.

Other players in the team include Sanath Jayasuriya, Muttiah Muralitharan, Chaminda Vaas, Romesh Kaluwitharana, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Upul Tharanga, and Asghar Afghan.

“Asia Lions our team from Asia. We find it the most suited name with the lion-hearted players that feature in the team. Shoaib Akhtar running into bowl and Jayasuriya cutting it over the square is what fans will now be most eagerly waiting for,” said Raman Raheja, CEO of Legends League Cricket in a press release.

Shoaib Akhtar, Shahid Afridi, Sanath Jayasuriya, Muttiah Muralitharan, Chaminda Vaas, Romesh Kaluwitharana, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Azhar Mahmood, Upul Tharanga, Misbah-ul-Haq, Mohammed Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Mohammed Yousuf, Umar Gul, Younis Khan, and Asghar Afghan will be playing for Asia Lions.

Former Indian coach Ravi Shastri is the commissioner of the league and speaking about the tournament, he said: “This is top quality exciting cricket in offer. The Lions of Asia from Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan coming together in one team will definitely give the other two teams a run for their money. I tell you they are absolute champions and Afridi, Murali, Chaminda, Shoaib Malik are all playing in one team, this will be a blast.”

According to the information available, there are two more teams in the tournament; India and the Rest of the World. Squads for both teams are yet to be announced.