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The Gulf was always among the richest parts of the world. As it has often happened with places that have prospered over time, plenty of South Asians migrated to the area. They left behind their countries, their homes, and their culture; they also left behind cricket.
Opportunities of playing (or even watching) cricket were sparse. The dry, blazing summers did not help. There was, however, a perpetual thirst for cricket.
It all started with Abdul Rahman Bukhatir, the man they refer to as The Father of Sharjah Cricket. Bukhatir joined hands with former Pakistan captain Asif Iqbal, and between them, they arranged a string of benefit matches.
With India winning World Cup 1983, Pakistan emerging as one of the strongest sides, and Sri Lanka getting Test status, Sharjah hosted the first Asia Cup in 1984. That was where it had all started. As things stand now, Sharjah has hosted the most One-Day Internationals in the world.
Popularity of cricket in Sharjah grew as satellite television replaced grainy Doordarshan feeds across the lengths and breadths of the country. Matches at Sharjah invariably involved the presence of Bollywood stars, which added to the glamour of the events.
For cricket fans of the subcontinent, Sharjah brings back many a happy memory: from Javed Miandad's last-ball six to Sachin Tendulkar's hundred amidst a sandstorm to Sanath Jayasuriya's scintillating 189, Sharjah has probably as many memories for the Asian teams than the venues in those countries themselves. And things have only looked uphill since Pakistan have made UAE their adopted home following their exile from international cricket as a host nation.
It was here that Basit Ali and Brian Lara competed with each other in a fierce battle in 1994; Sourav Ganguly lofted Grant Flower thrice on the same roof; Aaqib Javed took a hat-trick against India; Shane Warne bowled out Pakistan for 59 and 53 in the same Test; Saeed Ajmal and Younis Khan pulled off many a heroic act; and India scored their first ever 300.
Masters Champions League (MCL) is going to be a new feather in the cap of Sharjah and Dubai. Organised by Emirates Cricket Board and Oxigen Wallet, MCL will feature some of the greatest former cricketers from this century. MCL is a brainchild of cricket enthusiast and entrepreneur Zafar Shah. All matches will be played in T20 format.
90 players will feature in the first edition of MCL, and some of them are legends of the sport. The biggest names include Lara, Sangakkara, Kallis, Gilchrist, Sehwag, Rhodes, Smith, Jayawardene, Ganguly, Bond, Razzaq, Gibbs, Lee,Vettori, Mushtaq, and Yousuf.
Also, Oxigen Wallet is giving opportunity for cricket junkies to watch the action live by participating in a simple contest were a total of 75 lucky winners 5 per match will be selected to visit, stay, and watch MCL at Dubai and Sharjah. All they need to do is give a missed call to 965 399 6969, follow the URL on the text message they receive, download the Oxigen Wallet App and register, loading a mere Rs 100 in the Wallet.For more details click here.
All participants to win free !month subscription from Gaana''
There are six franchise-owned teams in the tournament.Players were auctioned, just like in IPL. The teams, named after zodiac signs, are Libra Legends (led by Ganguly), Gemini Arabians (Sehwag), Sagittarius Strikers (Gilchrist), Virgo Super Kings (Smith), Leo Lions (Lara), and Capricorn Commanders (Collingwood).
All six teams will play each other in a round-robin format, which means that there will be 15 group matches. These will be followed by the two semi-finals and the final, making it a total of 18. All matches will be played in Dubai and Sharjah, from 28th January to 13th February.
The matches will be telecast live on the Sony Six channel and streamed live on sonyliv.com and for more details, click here.
(This post is promoted by Oxigen Wallet)