Former India skipper Rahul Dravid has become the latest high-profile name to invest in the European T20 Premier League, picking up the Dublin Guardians ahead of the competition’s debut this August.
The ETPL – run in tandem with Cricket Ireland, Cricket Scotland and the Royal Dutch Cricket Association – will field six city-based sides from Dublin, Belfast, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Rotterdam and Amsterdam. It is the first ICC-sanctioned franchise event to straddle several European boards.
“What attracted me to ETPL was the larger vision behind it, the opportunity to help grow cricket in Europe by strengthening grassroots development and creating pathways for emerging talent across Ireland and Europe,” Dravid said in a statement. “Dublin already has a passionate cricketing community and enormous potential for growth. Nurturing the next generation has always been important to me, and I believe ETPL can play a meaningful role in that journey.”
The league is co-owned by Bollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan and has pulled in a clutch of former and current internationals as investors. Glenn Maxwell is linked with the Irish Wolves, Steve Waugh with Amsterdam Flames, Nathan McCullum and Kyle Mills with Edinburgh Castle Rockers, Chris Gayle with Glasgow Cosmic, while Jonty Rhodes, Faf du Plessis and Heinrich Klaasen back Rotterdam Dockers. Du Plessis and Maxwell are set to turn out on the field too, alongside Steven Smith, Mitchell Marsh, Tim David, Mitchell Santner, Liam Livingstone and others.
“I know some of the names…some absolutely great players,” Dravid was quoted as saying. “A great opportunity for them to be able to play with so many of the local Irish, Scottish, Dutch and European players. I think that in itself should be a really exciting opportunity.”
Early signs suggest each squad will blend three or four marquee overseas players with a core of domestic talent. That mix, organisers hope, will raise standards quickly while still giving local cricketers meaningful roles – not just the odd late-innings slog or token over.
Dravid, who lifted the T20 World Cup as India coach last year, believes crowds will ultimately decide the project’s success. “At the grassroots level, it’s about creating that awareness for the fans, it’s about getting people on the ground, it’s about giving them a great experience,” he said. “When they come to the cricket, the quality has got to be of a high standard but the experience of everything else at that venue has to be top-notch. Because we are competing with some very, very established sports.”
Ticket details and player draft dates are expected later this month. For now, the ETPL’s arrival offers another waypoint in cricket’s quiet push beyond its traditional heartlands – less headline-grabbing than some global leagues, perhaps, but a step that could help knit together Europe’s scattered but enthusiastic cricket communities.
