Hundred history-maker Will Smeed set for ILT20 in UAE


Paul Radley
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Will Smeed, the history-making young English batter, is set to feature in the first International League T20 in the UAE.

The 20-year-old, who has yet to play for England, on Wednesday night became the first player to hit a century in the Hundred.

He blazed 101 from 50 balls as Birmingham Phoenix beat the defending champions, Southern Brave, in the UK’s franchise cricket competition.

Despite his lack of international experience, the Somerset youngster has already made a name for himself on the T20 franchise circuit.

He turned out for Quetta Gladiators in the Pakistan Super League earlier this year, and caught the eye, too, as he made top scores of 99 and 97.

Now he seems set to add a UAE stamp to his passport, after signing up to feature in the ILT20.

The competition, which is scheduled to launch in January, on Thursday named the latest set of players who will be available to the six franchises.

At present, each of the teams can negotiate terms directly with up to six overseas players, although that might be revised to eight.

The remaining players are set to be recruited through a process that will be a combination of both an auction and draft.

Last week, the likes of Moeen Ali and Andre Russell were announced as having signalled their intent to play.

Now the likes of Kieron Pollard, Nicholas Pooran, Dwayne Bravo and Dasun Shanaka have been confirmed.

Smeed is also part of a list that includes Sheldon Cottrell, Andre Fletcher, and Tom Kohler-Cadmore.

The tournament will see 34 matches played across Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah.

Franchise owners include those who run Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League, as well as the company that own Manchester United.

The specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo hybrid

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Power: 390bhp

Torque: 400Nm

Price: Dh340,000 ($92,579

Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015

- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France

Updated: August 11, 2022, 11:28 AM