Abu Dhabi: World Cup-winning coach Trevor Bayliss will guide Team Abu Dhabi with England all-rounder Moeen Ali leading the side in the T10 tournament starting here 15 November.
The annual player draft saw 110 players being allocated to eight teams including big names like Sri Lanka pacer Lasith Malinga, West Indies all-rounder Keiran Pollard and Pakistan speedster Mohammad Amir.
Revealed as the eighth team, Team Abu Dhabi is supported by the Abu Dhabi Sports Council and will be trained by Bayliss, and coach of the UAE National Cricket Team Dougie Brown a media release said.
With England all-rounder Ali already selected as the icon player, the team picked up Sri Lankan powerhouse Niroshan Dickwella, Kiwi all-rounder Corey Anderson and Amir. Defending champions Northern Warriors opted for a strong West Indies side in the draw with Darren Sammy already confirmed as the team’s icon player.
The Maratha Arabians chose a balanced team, opting for a mixture of a fast bowling attack and a strong batting line-up. With icon player Australia’s Chris Lynn at the helm, the team brought in Malinga followed by West Indies’ Dwayne Bravo.
The Deccan Gladiators were quick to snap West Indies all-rounder Pollard while the Eoin Morgan-led Delhi Bulls pulled in former Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik alongside Afghanistan’s all-rounder Mohammad Nabi and Sri Lanka’s Kusal Perera. Team Qalandars opted to bring in Pakistan’s Mohammad Hafeez and Imad Wasim.