Join now and get your first month for just $1 ><\/a><\/p>\n\u201cI\u2019ve always been selective about where I invest my time and energy in cricket,\u201d Waugh said in a statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cFranchise cricket has expanded quickly, but this opportunity stood out because it is driven by aspiration and long-term thinking. In many ways, it marks a return to the game for me \u2013 but in a very different role. This is about helping uphold the standards and spirit of cricket while supporting its growth into Europe, which remains the game\u2019s last great frontier.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Netherlands-based franchise, which is expected to be named the Amsterdam Flames, have already confirmed the signing of Marsh as overseas player, while Smith and Australian pinch-hitter Tim David have also reportedly put pen to paper.<\/p>\n
Elsewhere, Australian superstar Glenn Maxwell has acquired a stake in the Beflast franchise, which is expected to be called the Irish Wolves.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am thrilled to be involved with the Irish Wolves, where we will build a culture of fun, family and playing without fear,\u201d Maxwell said in a statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Irish people love their sport and Cricket Ireland have made huge strides in expanding the game over the last two decades. The Wolves and the European T20 Premier League will accelerate that growth and I feel super proud to be leading the franchise in its inaugural year.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Edinburgh franchise, set to be called the Castle Rockers, is co-owned by former New Zealand cricketers Nathan McCullum and Kyle Mills.<\/p>\n
Scorchers beat Sixers, move to BBL final | 03:12<\/p>\n
Deals for the remaining franchises are anticipated to be completed by the end of February, while the inaugural tournament is set to commence during the final week of August.<\/p>\n
\u201cEurope is home to nearly one-third of the ICC\u2019s global membership, with 34 member nations across the continent, the largest concentration anywhere in the world,\u201d Banerjee said in a statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cMuch of Europe\u2019s cricketing ecosystem remains under-commercialised, presenting a significant opportunity for structured growth. ETPL is Europe\u2019s first ICC-sanctioned T20 league, designed to unlock this untapped potential. Through professional governance, a franchise-based structure and long-term discipline, ETPL aims to catalyse sustainable commercial growth and elevate European cricket on the global stage.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Australian captain Mitchell Marsh and batting champion Steve Smith are among the high-profile names that have signed up…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":426795,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[564],"tags":[64,63,740,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-426794","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cricket","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-cricket","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/426794","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=426794"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/426794\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/426795"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=426794"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=426794"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=426794"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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