The Lanka Premier League (LPL) has seen two editions so far. Them being in 2020 and 2021 responsibility. It was the Jaffna Kings that emerged as the champions on both occasions.
With the aim of creating an even more successful league, the LPL is coming back for its third edition. The Player Draft for the 2022 edition of Lanka Premier League will be held on 5th July 2022. The player draft will consist of 353 players in total consisting of 173 Sri Lankan and 180 overseas players. SkyExch is the poweredby sponsor for the LPL 2022 as well.
‘Player Draft’ comes with certain rules
The LPL governance committee, Franchise owners, their management and coaches are expected to take part in the ‘Draft’ which will be held virtually at 5 PM on 5th July. The draft will have several categories such as ‘International Ruby’, ‘International Sapphire’, ‘International Diamond ‘A’’, and ‘B’ and ‘International Platinum’. There will be 20 rounds of auction for a total of 353 players in the Draft.
In addition to 20 rounds, there will also be a special round called Sri Lanka ‘Gold Round’ which is aimed at finding Sri Lanka’s young talent from under 23. Two such players for each team would be mandatory from the 2022 season.
A typical Lanka Premier League Squad will consist of 20 players of which 14 would be Sri Lankan and six from overseas. Additionally, a team can also retain six of their players from last year, consisting of four Sri Lankan and two oversea players. The player draft also allows franchisees to Direct-sign two Sri Lakan and two overseas players before the auction of ‘Players Draft.’
Some of the major overseas cricketers to have submitted their names include the likes of Carlos Braithwaite, along with compatriots Evin Lewis, Fabian Allen, Sherfane Rutherford, Johnson Charles, Sheldon Cottrell, Ravi Rampaul, Dwaine Pretorius, Reeza Hendricks, Lizaad Williams, Shakib-al-Hasan, Kevin O’Brien and Ross Taylor.
The 2022 edition of the Lanka Premier League is rescheduled to kick off on 31st July 2022 and will be played on two grounds, namely the MRICS, Hambantota and RPICS, Colombo.
