ILT20: CP Rizwan hopes Adani Gulf Giants will build a fan base in UAE with dynamic squad

More
often
than
not,
the
big
names
from
the
traditionally
strong
cricketing
countries
steal
the
limelight,
however,
Adani’s
Gulf
Giants
are
putting
their
faith
and
backing
in
players
from
the
UAE.
Picking
up
the
baton
first
is
CP
Rizwan,
the
captain
of
the
UAE
cricket
team,
who
is
raring
to
go.

ILT20
2023:
Gulf
Giants
Announce
England
Batter
James
Vince
as
Captain
For
Inaugural
Edition

On
working
with
Andy
Flower

“To
work
with
an
experienced
person
like
Andy
Flower,
it
is
a
great
honour
for
us,
and
in
terms
of
the
squad,
we
have
a
good
combination
of
dynamic,
explosive,
experienced
and
classy
players.
The
likes
of
Shimron
Hetmyer,
James
Vince
and
Chris
Lynn
can
all
destroy
teams
single-handedly
on
their
day.
We
can’t
wait
to
hit
the
ground
and
produce
the
goods,”
Rizwan
said.

ILT20
2023:
Full
list
of
commentators
in
English,
Hindi
and
Tamil
on
TV
and
Live
Streaming
platforms

Looking
forward
to
working
with
T20
specialists

When
asked
about
who
are
the
players
he
is
most
looking
forward
to
working
with
in
Adani’s
Gulf
Giants’ squad,
Rizwan
said,
“James
Vince,
he
has
played
franchise
cricket
all
over
the
world,
Chris
Lynn,
a
powerhouse
in
T20
cricket,
and
Shimron
Hetmyer
to
name
a
few.
Then
there
is
also
David
Wiese,
who
is
very
experienced.
This
is
an
exciting
squad
and
working
alongside
them
and
testing
ourselves
in
tough
conditions
will
help
us
grow
as
players.”

Among
the
more
popular
sports
in
the
Asian
continent
and
across
the
globe,
cricket,
according
to
Rizwan
is
a
big
source
of
joy
for
everyone
in
the
UAE.
“In
the
UAE,
people
love
cricket
a
lot,
the
IPL,
the
India-Pakistan
games,
and
Adani’s
Gulf
Giants
have
genuine
crowd
pullers
like
Lynn,
Hetmyer
and
Vince.
And
I
am
sure,
together
we
will
provide
the
people
with
some
great
evenings
and
go
on
to
build
a
fan
base
for
the
Gulf
Giants
as
well.”

The
ILT20
is
the
first
T20
tournament
of
the
kind
in
the
UAE,
and
Rizwan
is
gung-ho
about
this.
“This
is
an
opportunity
for
us
UAE
players
to
showcase
our
talent,
rather
than
a
challenge
due
to
the
presence
of
the
international
stars.
We
want
to
make
use
of
this
chance
and
express
ourselves
and
entertain
our
fans.
This
is
our
chance
to
say
to
the
world
that
we
belong
to
the
elite
level.”

Looking
ahead
to
the
tournament,
Rizwan
said,
“The
Adani
franchises
are
among
the
best
in
whatever
sport
they
enter.
And
here
with
the
Gulf
Giants,
we
want
to
make
a
mark
and
our
team’s
culture
and
work
ethic
will
hopefully
help
us
do
the
best
we
can.
The
management
wants
the
best
for
us
and
we
will
work
together
in
one
direction.”

Gulf
Giants
squad:
James
Vince
(Captain),
Shimron
Hetmyer,
Chris
Jordan,
Chris
Lynn,
Tom
Banton,
Dominic
Drakes,
David
Wiese,
Liam
Dawson,
Jamie
Overton,
Qais
Ahmad,
Richard
Gleeson,
Ollie
Pope,
Rehan
Ahmed,
CP
Rizwan,
Aayan
Afzal
Khan,
Sanchit
Sharma,
and
Ashwanth
Valthappa.