Sunil Narine appointed skipper of Abu Dhabi Knight Riders-UAE

ABU DHABI: Sunil Narine on Wednesday was appointed as the captain of Abu Dhabi Knight Riders for the upcoming inaugural edition of the ILT20 in the UAE. Narine has been part of the Knight Riders bandwagon ever since he was signed up by the Kolkata franchise in the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2012.

"I'm very excited to take up the role as captain of Abu Dhabi Knight Riders. It's a new challenge because now I have to think about the functioning of our whole team, rather than just focus on my game or my four overs. It's something I'm really looking forward to," he said in an official release by the franchise.

Narine also represents the Trinbago Knight Riders in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL). "I have grown on Knight Riders, and Knight Riders have grown on me, so it's like a family. Everywhere they have a team, I love being a part of it."

"I have played a lot of cricket in the UAE, so I know the conditions pretty well. If you look at the ADKR squad, it is a familiar setup and not a brand-new XI that I have to get used to. So that gives me great confidence, knowing the strength of my players," he added.

Narine will be having the company of fellow West Indies players like Andre Russell, Akeal Hosein, Raymon Reifer, Kennar Lewis, and Ravi Rampaul. The Abu Dhabi franchise also has overseas players like Jonny Bairstow, Seekuge Prasanna, Lahiru Kumara, Charith Asalanka, Paul Stirling, Ali Khan, Brandon Glover, and Colin Ingram.

Recently, they signed Matiullah Khan, Fahad Nawaz, Sabir Ali and Zawar Farid as local UAE players. "There are a lot of senior guys in the team as well, who I can bounce ideas and information off. It's going to be a lot of fun, it has been a long journey with the Knight Riders family, and I hope it's a never-ending one," stated Narine.

Abu Dhabi Knight Riders will open the inaugural edition of ILT20 against Dubai Capitals on January 12, with the final of the six-team league comprising 34 matches scheduled for February 12. It will be clashing with the start of the SA20 league in South Africa and the Big Bash League (BBL) running in Australia.