New Chandigarh, Aug 2 (IANS) The Sher-e-Punjab T20 League was officially launched at the PCA International Cricket Stadium on Sunday, ushering in a new domestic T20 competition aimed at providing a platform for Punjab’s emerging cricketers.

The inaugural edition of the tournament will be held from August 30 to September 13 and will feature six franchises competing in 27 matches in a round-robin format. The league is set to showcase several of Punjab’s leading cricketers, including India captain Shubman Gill, Arshdeep Singh, Abhishek Sharma, Gurnoor Brar, Prabhsimran Singh and Ramandeep Singh.

The league was launched by Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) secretary Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer and president Amarjeet Singh Mehta in the presence of Gill and Arshdeep. The official logo of the tournament was also unveiled during the ceremony.

Speaking at the launch, Gill described the Sher-e-Punjab T20 League as an ideal platform for young cricketers to showcase their talent and progress towards representing Punjab and India.

“Punjab has always produced outstanding cricketers, and I believe this league will help discover many more. I congratulate the Punjab Cricket Association for this wonderful initiative and wish the league great success,” Gill said.

Meet Hayer said Punjab has consistently been one of India’s biggest contributors to cricket, producing legends such as Lala Amarnath and Yuvraj Singh, along with current international stars including Gill, Arshdeep Singh, Prabhsimran Singh and Harmanpreet Kaur.

“The depth of talent in Punjab is unmatched, and that is why we believe the Sher-e-Punjab T20 League will become one of the country’s premier domestic T20 competitions,” he said.

Describing the league as a visionary initiative of Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, Meet Hayer said the tournament aims to provide a professional platform for emerging cricketers from the state to showcase their talent and take the next step in their careers.

“This league will provide young cricketers with a platform to showcase their talent alongside international stars. We are grateful to all the players, the Punjab Cricket Association and everyone associated with this initiative. We are confident the league will be a grand success,” he added.

PCA president Amarjeet Singh Mehta said the competition would allow aspiring cricketers to share the dressing room with international stars while showcasing their abilities on a bigger stage.

“The Sher-e-Punjab T20 League will play an important role in shaping and further cementing the future of Punjab cricket,” Mehta said.

During the launch ceremony, PCA secretary Meet Hayer, president Amarjeet Mehta, vice-president Deepak Bali, treasurer Sunil Gupta and joint secretary Sidhant Sharma also felicitated the franchise owners and players.

The auction for the inaugural edition will be held on August 9, when the six franchises representing Amritsar, Fazilka, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Mohali and Bathinda will assemble their squads.

Each franchise will have a salary purse of Rs 45 lakh. The marquee player will be valued at Rs 10 lakh, while the base price for an icon player has been fixed at Rs 1.5 lakh. The base prices for Punjab first-class, U-23, U-19 and district players have been set at Rs 1 lakh, Rs 75,000, Rs 50,000 and Rs 20,000 respectively. Each franchise can have a maximum squad size of 20 players.

–IANS

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