7 Dec 2015 | Cricket
Glamorgan's Jacques Rudolph has been snapped up by Gemini Arabians in today's Masters Champions League (MCL) auction for $58,000 USD.
Rudolph joins the franchise squad alongside former international stars such as Virender Sehwag, Kumar Sangakkara, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Saqlain Mushtaq and Murali Muralitharan for the two-week T20 tournament starting in January.
The Masters Champions League tournament will be played at all three international venues in the UAE: Sharjah, Dubai and Abu Dhabi and will comprise six teams, with each side named after a star sign: Libra, Leo, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Virgo and Gemini.
Each squad includes 15 players, with 90 in all taking part from a roster of 250 involved in the auction. England Ashes Test winners Geraint Jones, Michael Vaughan, Paul Collingwood (all Capricorn Commanders), Graeme Swann (Libra Legends), Darren Gough and former Glamorgan favourite Simon Jones (both Leo Lions) are all included.
Indeed there are a number of other former Glamorgan players are also included in the tournament most notably at Libra Legends who include Sourav Ganguly, Jacques Kallis, Marcus North and Shaun Tait, whilst James Franklin and Herschelle Gibbs (both Leo Lions) and Alviro Petersen (Sagittarius Soldiers) were also snapped up in the auction and are due to take part.
Organisers say all six franchises have been bought and details of ownership are expected to be released at the auction.
Our ultimate vision is for the MCL to become the natural next step for all international players retiring from the professional game to extend their careers in a masters league, MCL chairman Zafar Shah said.
15-man Gemini Arabians squad: Virender Sehwag, Kumar Sangakkara, Muttiah Muralitharan, Kyle Mills, Saqlain Mushtaq, Jacques Rudolph, Naved-ul-Hasan, Justin Kemp, Paul Harris, Brad Hodge, Richard Levi, Ashish Bagai, Graham Onions, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Saqib Ali.
You can follow the auction on Twitter at #MCLAuction or the Gemini Arabians @ArabiansMCL
More information about the Masters Champions League is expected to be released in due course following the auction today. For clarity the tournament is different to the All-Stars league, the brainchild of Sachin Tendulkar and Shane Warne, that recently staged three Twenty20 games in the US. This All-Stars League is set to be held across the world at different locations in future, whereas the Masters Champions League has its home in UAE after being sanctioned by Emirates Cricket Board and ICC.