Euro T20 Slam Explained

Euro T20 Slam
Country:Ireland, Netherlands and Scotland
Cricket Format:Twenty20
Participants:6

The Euro T20 Slam is a planned professional Twenty20 cricket league. The first edition of the tournament was initially scheduled to start in August 2019, with matches to be held in Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands.[1] Its launch has been postponed on several occasions due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

History

In March 2019, Cricket Scotland, Cricket Ireland and the Royal Dutch Cricket Association officially announced the Euro T20 Slam.[2] It was to start on 30 August and conclude on 22 September 2019 and feature 33 matches.[3] [4] The tournament was to have six city-based franchise teams, two each from Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands.[5] [6] In April 2019, six cities were awarded a franchise: Belfast and Dublin in Ireland, Glasgow and Edinburgh in Scotland, and Amsterdam and Rotterdam in the Netherlands.[7] The team names and schedule were released on 30 April 2019.[8]

Shahid Afridi, Martin Guptill, Rashid Khan, Brendon McCullum, Eoin Morgan and Shane Watson were announced as the six icon players,[9] and Babar Azam, JP Duminy, Chris Lynn, Luke Ronchi, Dale Steyn and Imran Tahir were announced as the six marquee players.[10] [11] [12] [13]

In June 2020, the tournament's organisers were looking to start the tournament on 20 August 2020, with all the matches played in Malahide, Ireland, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[14] However, the following month, the organisers confirmed that the event would be launched in 2021, because of the pandemic.[15] In June 2021, it was announced that the league would be further delayed as the planned dates in 2021 clashed with the restart of the rescheduled IPL 2021.[16]

In March 2023, Cricket Ireland announced that the tournament would be further delayed although they were aiming to begin in 2024.[17]

Teams

The teams due to participate in the first season were:[18]

Team Home groundCoachCaptain
Amsterdam KnightsChris Lynn
Belfast Titans
Dublin ChiefsMalahide Cricket Club Ground Eoin Morgan
Edinburgh RocksMartin Guptill
Glasgow Giants The Grange Club Imran Tahir
Rotterdam RhinosVRA Cricket GroundBabar Azam

Notes and References

  1. News: New League featuring Irish, Scottish and Dutch teams to be called Euro T20 Slam. BBC Sport . 20 March 2019. 21 March 2019.
  2. Web site: 'Euro T20 Slam' – Name of the new European T20 league confirmed. 20 March 2019. International Cricket Council.
  3. News: Scottish, Irish & Dutch teams feature in new European T20 league. 6 March 2019. The Cricketer.
  4. Web site: Scotland, Ireland and Netherlands announce combined T20 league. 6 March 2019. International Cricket Council.
  5. Web site: Ireland, Scotland and Netherlands set to launch Euro T20 League. 6 March 2019. ESPN Cricinfo.
  6. Web site: New European T20 League Announced Starting August 2019. 6 March 2019. Cricket Scotland.
  7. Web site: Euro T20 Slam finalises the six participating cities. 18 April 2019. Inside Sport. 2 April 2019 .
  8. Web site: Amsterdam Kings and Glasgow Giants... Euro T20 Slam team names unveiled. 30 April 2019. the cricketer.
  9. Web site: Euro T20 Slam Squads. 20 August 2019.
  10. Web site: Bash Bros headline Euro tournament. 7 May 2019. cricket.com.au.
  11. Web site: Shahid Afridi announced as icon player for Euro T20 Slam. 23 May 2019. The Indian Express. 22 May 2019 .
  12. Web site: Eoin Morgan signed as icon player for Euro T20 Slam. 30 May 2019. Business Standard. 29 May 2019 .
  13. Web site: Steyn and Guptill signed. 2 July 2019. Cricket Europe. 2 July 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190702170519/https://www.cricketeurope.com/DATABASE/ARTICLES2019/articles/000009/000954.shtml. dead.
  14. Web site: Euro T20 Slam organisers eye August window. 12 June 2020. ESPN Cricinfo.
  15. Web site: Euro T20 Slam set for 2021 start as short-term uncertainty requires "prudent measures". 22 July 2020. Cricket Ireland. 22 July 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200722103947/https://www.cricketireland.ie/news/article/euro-t20-slam-set-for-2021-start-as-short-term-uncertainty-requires-prudent. dead.
  16. Web site: Euro T20 Slam postponed for 2021 due to COVID and scheduling impacts . Cricket Ireland . 24 June 2021 . 25 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210625222211/https://www.cricketireland.ie/news/article/euro-t20-slam-to-be-postponed . dead .
  17. Web site: Update on Euro T20 Slam concept Cricket Ireland . 2023-06-30 . www.cricketireland.ie.
  18. Web site: TEAMS . Euro T20 Slam . 30 April 2019.