Over the weekend, the inaugural Masters Champions League (MCL) will crown a winner in Dubai. The first semi-final takes place on Thursday evening, the second on Friday and the final on Saturday.
The match-ups
The first semi-final is between the league’s strongest team, the Gemini Arabians and the Sagittarius Strikers, who finished fourth. The Arabians have cruised through the group stages undefeated, including a high-scoring but narrow win over the Strikers in Sharjah. On Friday, the Leo Lions take on the Virgo Super Kings; in the group stages the Super Kings pulled off a four-wicket win, but off the last ball of the game.
See more: Masters Champions League – The National's preview coverage and reporting
The stars
Definitely keep an eye on Kumar Sangakkara, of the Gemini Arabians in the first semi-final. For all those who thought he retired a little too early you were probably right. He is grossly overqualified for this level of cricket and he is, by 62 runs, the tournament’s leading scorer. He has hit four fifties in five matches. There is also his captain Virender Sehwag, who has been in form worthy of a recent retiree, and hit a 47-ball 100 in a group game.
Sri Lankans rule
In truth, the first season has been a platform for Sri Lankans to display their prowess. The top two run-scorers are Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene, who is going to be his best friend’s opponent on Thursday. Jayawardene is also the only other batsman apart from Sehwag to hit a hundred. The top two wicket-takers are Muttiah Muralitharan and one-time Sri Lankan leggie, Malinga Bandara. It must be something in the island air.
Botha, the allrounder
Brian Lara has had a poor tournament, with only nine runs to show from three innings and outwitted by Muralitharan in his first game. But he has been able to call upon Johan Botha, the South African off-spinner who, here, has become an invaluable allrounder. Botha leads the batting averages for his side and for bowlers with more than 10 overs, is the most economical. His spin and Fidel Edwards’s pace will be key factors in the second semi.
Teething troubles
It has not been the most auspicious debut for the MCL. They have been bogged down by official concerns over who should be eligible to play in such a league, and been embroiled in an unseemly controversy over the issuance of NOCs. There were problems with payments to players too, which briefly threatened to derail the league. But the quality of the cricket has been eminently watchable, although that is, perhaps the problem: a lot of the players in it are not yet fully retired.
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