UAE: DP World ILT20 Season 3 to kick off with exciting rematch, star-studded opening

Gates will open for spectators at 4pm on January 11, while fans worldwide can enjoy the action live on Zee Network’s channels and digital platforms

Published: Fri 10 Jan 2025, 5:29 PM

By
Web Desk

DP World ILT20 players pose with the tournament trophy at the Dubai International Stadium turf. Photo: Supplied

The highly anticipated return of DP World ILT20 Season 3 is just around the corner, set to kick off on Saturday, January 11, 2025. After two unforgettable seasons, this year’s tournament promises to be even bigger, bolder, and more thrilling.

Matches will be held across three iconic venues: Dubai International Stadium, Abu Dhabi's Zayed Cricket Stadium, and Sharjah Cricket Stadium. With 15 matches in Dubai, 11 in Abu Dhabi, and 8 in Sharjah, fans are in for a month of exciting cricket action.

The season will open with an electrifying rematch of the Season 2 final between reigning champions MI Emirates and Dubai Capitals, taking place at the Dubai International Stadium.

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The grand opening ceremony will feature Bollywood stars Shahid Kapoor, Pooja Hegde, and Sonam Bajwa, who will perform live, setting the stage for an unforgettable night. The ceremony will begin at 6pm local time, followed by the much-anticipated first match of the season at 7.15pm

Gates will open for spectators at 4pm, while fans worldwide can enjoy the action live on Zee Network’s channels and digital platforms.

Excitement for the upcoming season

Ahead of the month-long cricket competition, captains from five of the six franchises, along with Gulf Giants' fast bowler Tymal Mills, gathered to share their expectations and build excitement for the upcoming season.

DP World ILT20 ambassador Shoaib Akhtar expressed his enthusiasm, saying, “This season, the DP World ILT20 is larger than ever before, the kind of colours and hard work that went into it last year was amazing. It’s good to see people tune in and engage with the tournament. I’m sure this season will be even better.”

Nicholas Pooran, captain of MI Emirates, aims to continue his excellent form from last season, where he scored 354 runs across ten innings. He emphasised the importance of a strong team core, highlighting UAE’s Muhammed Waseem as a key player to watch. "We’re eager to defend our title and perform well," Pooran said.

Sharing his optimism about the team’s chances of securing back-to-back titles, he stated: "I have been a part of the competition, since the inception. We take winning very seriously and are eager to get the tournament underway, go out there, and perform. We also understand what it takes to win. As a franchise, it’s important to have a strong core, and we’re really pleased to have retained a great unit, including somebody like UAE’s Muhammed Waseem. He has done very well for us and we are keen to watch him grow further as player, batter and leader.”

Sikandar Raza, returning to lead Dubai Capitals, reflected on his most valuable player (MVP) win from Season 2, stating, "This is my third year with the Dubai Capitals, and it’s great to be with them again. Winning the MVP award last year was nice, but it would have been even better to lift the trophy."

"Having nine international players in the playing eleven certainly makes it one of the toughest leagues in the world. Hopefully, we can take that extra step this year, building on the lessons we learned last season," the Red Belt winner added.

'Looking forward to a good start'

Sunil Narine, T20 veteran and skipper of the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders, lauded his team’s composition. Narine said: “We have our eyes on the prize. As a captain, you have do it your own way, I think it’s a work in progress but I’m getting better and better at it. A key factor for us will be the powerplay batting and bowling and how we perform in those phases, but we have quality players and we’re looking forward to having a good start.”

Lockie Ferguson is set to lead the Desert Vipers in his debut season at the DP World ILT20, the New Zealander highlighted his enthusiasm on taking part in the competition for the first time, he said: “It’s great to be here with so many players that I have played alongside and against in my career. It’s a beautiful part of the world and we are very looked after here. I am looking forward to a new role as a leader and putting my own spin on it. Fortunately, we have got a lot of experience on the team, and I am looking forward to getting to know the UAE players as well.”

Gulf Giants' fast bowler Tymal Mills, who addressed the press conference in place of his captain James Vince, said: “I am really excited for the first game. It is my first time working with Andy Flower who is one of most successful coaches in franchise cricket. We’ve had a great week getting to know each other and we’re looking forward to the competition. We have many guys who have played for a long time, and we have won the competition in the first season, so a lot of us know how to win. We have high expectations and will hopefully lift the trophy.”

World's finest cricketers

Also taking the reins as captain in his debut season, Sharjah Warriorz’s Tim Southee said: “It’s a great tournament, I have watched from afar and can’t wait to get on in this season. My goal is always to try and contribute to the team’s success and offer some experience to the younger players, while always learning from some of the others.”

The month long cricket fest will see some of the world’s finest cricketers in action including David Warner (Dubai Capitals), Jason Holder (Abu Dhabi Knight Riders), Shimron Hetmyer (Gulf Giants), Phil Salt (Abu Dhabi Knight Riders), Bhanuka Rajapaksa (Sharjah Warriorz), Sam Curran (Desert Vipers), Jake Fraser-McGurk (Dubai Capitals), Tim David( Gulf Giants), Fazalhaq Farooqi (MI Emirates), Adil Rashid (Sharjah Warriorz), Fakhar Zaman (Desert Vipers), Roston Chase (Abu Dhabi Knight Riders), Matthew Wade (Sharjah Warriorz), Ibrahim Zadran (Gulf Giants), Alex Hales (Desert Vipers), Sherfane Rutherford (Desert Vipers), Rovman Powell (Dubai Capitals), and Chris Jordan (Gulf Giants).

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