Colombo, Nov 10 (UNI) Darren Ganga, Aamir Sohail, Mike Heysman, Herschelle Gibbs,

Russel Arnold and Roshan Abeysinghe are in the commentator’s panel for the upcoming

Lanka Premier League (LPL) scheduled to kick-off from November 26 till December 16

at Mahinda Rajapaksha International Cricket Stadium (MRIC) in Hambantota.

Five franchisee teams, named after Colombo, Kandy, Galle, Dambulla and Jaffna, will

compete in 23 matches over a 15-day period for the title.

Colombo will take on Kandy in the opening match and the final will be played on

December 16. A galaxy of global stars which includes Chris Gayle, Shahid Afridi, Wahab

Riaz, Shoaib Malik, Carlos Braithwaite, Samit Patel, Lasith Malinga, Angelo Mathews,

Liam Plunkett and many more will be taking part in the 15-day extravaganza.

Talking about the opportunity, the former Pakistan opener Aamir Sohail said, “I am

extremely excited about the League which has already created a lot of interest in the

cricketing fraternity. I am looking forward for the first match to start.”

“There are quite a few big names in fray and I am sure the fans will witness some

exciting games and it gives me immense satisfaction that I, and my team of some

really reputed players themselves, will bring this exciting encounters to the audience,”

said former Sri Lankan all-rounder Russel Arnold.

Talking about commentary stint Gibbs said, “The League seems very promising

with the kind of players each teams have in their line-up. Some of us in the commentary

team have played with them not very long ago. It will be interesting talking about their

game.”

SLC VP and LPL Tournament Director Ravin Wickramaratne said, “It gives me

immense pleasure to present to the fans the long list of commentators who will bring

the game to the audience in their living room. They were great players themselves

and their understanding of the game will add value to the overall listening experience.”

CEO of IPG, the Dubai-based promoters of LPL, Anil Mohan said, “The names we

have in the commentary line-up are very experienced in every aspects of the game,

I am sure their analysis and explanation of the proceedings will make it very interesting

for the audience.”

Broadcast Director, Hemant Buch said, “With state of the art technology and some

of the best talent in the world behind the camera as well as in front of it, this inaugural

edition of the LPL promises to be one to savour for viewers. Since fans will only be

able to watch it on TV, the onus is on us to deliver a world class production, a challenge

that we are looking forward to with great anticipation and with the given team behind the

scenes and the commentary line up I am sure it’s going to be a marvelous event.”

UNI BM