{"id":431834,"date":"2026-01-23T08:48:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-23T08:48:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/431834\/"},"modified":"2026-01-23T08:48:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-23T08:48:11","slug":"abhishek-bachchan-on-etpl-cricket-50th-birthday-plans-in-australia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/431834\/","title":{"rendered":"Abhishek Bachchan On ETPL, Cricket & 50th Birthday Plans In Australia"},"content":{"rendered":"

As he says it himself, India \u2013 like Australia \u2013 is very much a cricketing nation. Yet, Abhishek Bachchan<\/a> has looked beyond those shores for his latest project involving the sport. The Bollywood superstar has co-founded the European T20 Premier League (ETPL), appearing in Sydney on Wednesday to announce the owners of its first three franchises in Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands.<\/p>\n

As a joint venture between Rules Global (\u201cRules X\u201d) and Cricket Ireland, the ETPL is further supported through formal partnerships with Cricket Scotland and the Royal Dutch Cricket Association (KNCB). Speaking to Draw Your Box at Sydney\u2019s Pier One, the actor described the ETPL as an opportunity to fill a huge gap.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the last frontier, right? Australia, Africa, Asia, now North America. They all have competitive T20 leagues that are played on a franchise base, and Europe is the only one that didn\u2019t,\u201d Bachchan told Draw Your Box. \u201cSo, we were all looking at doing something with cricket, and we felt that that was the right market to do it in.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo get a world class tournament and give an opportunity to the Europeans and the cricketers over there, the aspiring cricketers in the business, it\u2019s only going to be beneficial to them,\u201d he added. \u201cYou\u2019re going to see, in time to come, that their quality of cricket is going to improve as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Listen to our podcast interview with Abhishek Bachchan below:<\/p>\n

Besides being a huge fan of cricket, Bachchan\u2019s link to the sport extends to the big screen. In 2023, he played a cricket coach in Ghoomer. The sports drama Bollywood film was about a cricketer who loses her right arm in a freak accident after securing a spot in the Indian National Women\u2019s cricket team. In August 2023, Bachchan appeared at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne to promote the film. On Wednesday, he said he couldn\u2019t have predicted he\u2019d be back in Australia to announce developments in such a significant cricket venture like the ETPL.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s surreal, never had I thought it,\u201d he tells us. \u201cI mean, whilst we were shooting Ghoomer, ETPL was already on the cards and being discussed and worked upon. But to be back here in Australia to announce the first three franchises is fantastic.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"European T20 Premier League Sydney Jan 2026. Express Edits. By Orlandosydney.com<\/p>\n

Bachchan says each of the franchise cities \u2013\u00a0Amsterdam, Edinburgh and Belfast \u2013 aim to captivate locals across the board, not just the South Asian diaspora across Europe.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe wonderful thing about Europe and cricket is a lot of them understand cricket already, as compared to, say, in North America, where you have to rely on the diaspora from the subcontinent,\u201d says the actor. \u201cHere is a place that understands cricket, plays cricket,\u201d he continues, explaining \u201cit\u2019s a global product\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the diaspora would be interested and want to come, the more the merrier\u2026 but obviously we would like a lot of the locals to also come there and support their teams.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, does Bachchan himself prefer a cricket stadium packed with fans, or a film premiere flooded with fans?<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d be happiest with the filled-up stadium actually, because a premiere is more for your friends and family, which they better show up [to] if I call them,\u201d he cheekily quips.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd if you ask me a question between a \u2018house full\u2019 board outside one of my movies or a filled cricket stadium, that would be a huge dilemma. But currently, to this one, it would be a filled cricket stadium.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"European T20 Premier League Sydney Jan 2026. Express Edits. By Orlandosydney.com<\/p>\n

\"\"European T20 Premier League Sydney Jan 2026. Express Edits. By Orlandosydney.com<\/p>\n

Bachchan\u2019s whirlwind trip to Australia has largely been filled with press commitments, but not without dazzling Sydney harbour views as the weather brightened on Wednesday. With his 50th birthday less than a month away (February 5 to be exact), Draw Your Box cheekily asked him if this trip Down Under was also an early present to himself to celebrate the milestone birthday.<\/p>\n

\u201cI never looked upon it that way, but yeah, I\u2019m going to ask these guys to get me a nice present tonight then,\u201d he joked, referring to the high-profile cricketers and other ETPL co-owners at the press conference. \u201cIt\u2019s a good way to celebrate, don\u2019t you think?\u201d<\/p>\n

Speaking of others in the room, the likes of Aussie cricket legend Steve Waugh, Olympic gold medallist hockey player Jamie Dwyer, and Tim Thomas, former CEO of the Centre for Australia-India Relations and former Partner at KPMG Australia, were present as newly announced co-owners of the Amsterdam franchise. ETPL co-founders Saurav Banerjee, Priyanka Kaul and Dhiraj Malhotra were also there.<\/p>\n

Bachchan also announced to media that Edinburgh will be owned by former New Zealand internationals Nathan McCullum, former New Zealand international and high-performance cricket coach, and Kyle Mills, former New Zealand fast bowler and former ICC No.1 ODI bowler.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile Belfast will be owned by Australian cricket star Glenn Maxwell, together with Rohan Lund, former Group CEO of NRMA, alongside strategic partners to be announced in due course.<\/p>\n

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