Angelo, Faf, Andre picked by Colombo in LPL Draft

Former Sri Lanka skipper Angelo Mathews, former South African skipper Faf du Plessis and Jamaican all-rounder with more than 300 T20 matches under his belt, Andre Russell are some of the top names picked by the Colombo Kings franchisee in the Lanka Premier League Player’s Draft held on Monday. Mathews is the Local Icon in the team while Faf and Russell are the two overseas icons.

Sri Lanka-born former Australian players and coach, Dav Whatmore, the man who took Sri Lanka to the top of the world in limited-overs cricket when the Island nation won the ICC Cricket World Cup in 1996, is part of the coaching set-up of the Colombo franchisee in the League. Apart from Sri Lanka, Whatmore has coached Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Zimbabwe.

Among others, Kandy Tuskers picked up Kushal Janith as the local icon while Chris Gayle and Liam Plunkett were picked as the two overseas signings. The team will be coached by Hashan Tillakaratne. Galle Gladiators have Lasith Malinga as the local icon while Shahid Afridi and Colin Ingram are the two overseas signings. The team will be coached by Moin Khan. Dashun Shanka is the local icon for Dambulla Hawks while David Miller and Carlos Brathwaite are the overseas signings.  The Hawks team will be coached by Jon Lewis.

Meanwhile, Jaffna Stallions have Thisara Perera as the local icon and Dawid Malan and Wanindu Hasaranga as the overseas signing.

The draft was held online and in the presence of IPG CEO Anil Mohan, SLC VP Ravin Wickramaratne, SLC CEO Ashley de Silva, franchise owners, and head coaches of each team. The Lanka Premier League is scheduled to be played from November 21 to December 13, 2020, at two venues—Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Kandy and Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium in Hambantota. Teams will compete in 23 matches over a 15-day period for the title.

Squads: