In the first season of the star-studded Indian Veteran Premier League (IVPL), two Jammu and Kashmir cricketers have been picked by the Red-Carpet Delhi franchise.
Samiullah Beigh and Omar Alam, the fast-bowling allrounders, are set to feature in this tournament and will play alongside international cricket stars like Chris Gayle, Virender Sehwag, Imran Tahir, Herschelle Gibbs, Suresh Raina and many others.
Talking to Rising Kashmir, Samiullah Beigh said, it feels great to be part of such an elite tournament.
“Luckily, I have been playing cricket continuously since my first-class retirement, in order to keep my body fit. So, this should be a great challenge to test myself against great stars of cricket like Chris Gayle, Suresh Raina, Sehwag, Yusuf Pathan and others”, he said.
The Red Carpet franchise, the team that Samiullah and Omar have been picked for, will be captained by South African star Herschelle Gibbs. Many other international players like Thisara Perera, Richard Levi, Ashley Nurse etc are also part of the team.
Samiullah is the highest wicket-taking fast bowler from J&K in first-class history and has played 61 First-class matches, 37 List-A matches, and 23 T20s. He has also played for North Zone and has attended several IPL camps. He was the part of two North zone champion teams ,Duleep trophy 2008-09 and Deodhar trophy 2011-12
Omar Alam who has played for J&K in the Vijay Hazare and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, while talking to Rising Kashmir said that it seems my dream has come true to be among the first players ever selected for the IVPL.
“I have the opportunity to share the dressing room with cricket legends and learn from their experience. I think the IVPL is a great platform for regional talents who have not had enough exposure in mainstream cricket. I am looking forward to playing some entertaining and competitive cricket in the IVPL and making my team and my state proud,” he said
It will be the first edition of IVPL and is to be played in Dehradun from February 23 to March 03. The live broadcast of the league will carried out on various platforms.
