Can the Dolphins take on the Lahore Lions at this year's CLT20?
This year's Champions League
Twenty20 cricket tournament will see Group A's Dolphins take on the Lahore
Lions on September 27th.
The match will see the South
African side take on Pakistan's Lahore at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in
Bangalore.
It was a controversial topic
as to whether or not the Lahore Lions would be taking part in this year's
competition. The team's visa application to play in India was a controversial issue in the lead up to the tournament
and it looked as though they could potentially not play.
However, despite a fragile
political relationship between India and Pakistan, it was confirmed at the
beginning of September that the team had had their visa applications approved
and would be going to Bangalore to participate.
The concerns were heightened
after it became apparent how few Pakistani players were playing in the Indian
Premier League. The Lahore Lions captain, Mohammed Hafeez, was confident
however and assured fans that the lack of league level play would not affect
the Lions' outcome in their upcoming Champions League Twenty20 matches.
Prior to his arrival in
Bangalore, Hafeez said: “We are departing with confidence. We all know how
important the first stage is so we are focusing on qualifying for the next
round. We, as a team, have been playing some exciting cricket in the last two
years and the squad has gutsy players from our domestic circuit so we have an
ability to fight at the top level.”
There is certainly some
fighting talk from the Lahore Lions, who will also have to face this year's
Indian Premier League winners, Kolkata Knight Riders, as well as third place
contenders Chennai Super Kings before they take on the South African outfit.
The Dolphins are also pretty confident however, with their
coach, all-rounder Lance Klusener, expressing his desire to take home the title
this year. He said: “We are really looking forward
to the challenge up ahead. Our intention is to come here and win this trophy
and win this tournament. I think it's important that we approach it in that way and play in a certain way that we
feel we can achieve that goal.”
The coach added that the
tournament would be a great opportunity for the team's young players to stretch
their legs.
With players like Adam
Gilchrist not truly coming into their own until their 40s, the Dolphins could
be proven wrong, but with the Lions' lack of league experience, their upcoming
match really could be anybody's victory.
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Both Teams are very strong in the shorter format. Dolphins have better chance of winning. fantasy t20 cricket