Bollywood star Salman Khan's brother Sohail Khan has bought the Kandy franchise in the Lanka Premier League, which is scheduled to be played from November 21 to December 13. West Indies' explosive T20 batsman Chris Gayle is a part of the franchise, along with leading Sri Lankan stars Kusal Perera and Kusal Mendis.
Sohail Khan said that he is excited to be a part of the tournament, which will see its inaugural edition this year.
"There is lot of potential in the Lanka Premier League and we are really very happy to be part of this exciting initiative," Khan said in a press release.
"Sri Lankan fans are very passionate about the game and I am sure they will come out in large numbers to support the team. Chris Gayle is obviously the Universal Boss, but he is not alone, we have a very good team, a good balance of youth and experience, and I am backing my team to play the final.”
England's fast bowler Liam Plunkett is also a part of the side.
Sohail Khan has become the fifth Indian Bollywood actor to own a franchise cricket team in a professional T20 cricket league.
While Shah Rukh Khan owns Kolkata Knight Riders (IPL) and Trinbago Knight Riders (CPL), Juhi Chawla co-owns KKR, while Shilpa Shetty and Preity Zinta co-own Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab (both in IPL) respectively.
Here is the squad of Sohail Khan-owned Kandy Tuskers after the draft took place last week:
Squad: Chris Gayle, Kusal Perera, Liam Plunkett, Wahab Riaz, Kusal Mendis, Nuwan Pradeep, Seekkuge Prasanna, Asela Gunaratne, Naveen-Ul-Haq, Kamindu Mendis, Dilruwan Perera, Priyamal Perera, Kavishka Anjula, Lasith Embuldeniya, Lahiru Samarakoon, Nishan Fernando, Chamika Edirisinghe, Ishan Jayaratne
