Dubai, 9 November: The DP World International League T20 (ILT20) has partnered with the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) to celebrate the Spirit of Cricket at the tournament, with a new award to be presented at the end of Season 5.
The Spirit of Cricket Award will go to one of the six teams, or to an individual, judged to have best embodied the Spirit of Cricket. It is the first such award at the ILT20.
Season 5 dates and venues
The fifth edition of the six-team league will be played from Saturday, 21 November, to Sunday, 20 December 2026, with the final on the last day. The 34 matches will be staged at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi, the Dubai International Stadium and the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
Desert Vipers are the defending champions. Gulf Giants (Season 1), MI Emirates (Season 2) and Dubai Capitals (Season 3) have also won the title. Abu Dhabi Knight Riders and Sharjah Warriorz complete the line-up.
Overseas players due to feature include Babar Azam, Liam Livingstone, David Miller, Rashid Khan, Heinrich Klaasen, Faf du Plessis, Nicholas Pooran, Phil Salt, Alex Hales, Tim Seifert, Fakhar Zaman, Usman Tariq and Sunil Narine.
MCC and ILT20 on the partnership
MCC, as Guardian of the Laws, is promoting the values of the Spirit of Cricket worldwide. Since the first award of its kind last year, it has also partnered with ICC Europe to present an award at each of the three ICC Europe Men’s Sub Regional World Cup Qualification events this year.
Rob Lynch, MCC’s Director of Cricket and Operations, said: “MCC sees franchise leagues as the standard-bearers for playing the game in the right way – playing hard but playing fair and with a smile on your face. With many of the players involved being international teammates and facing each other in competitive cricket, the tournaments can be a catalyst for improvements in player behaviour across the game.”
Mike Fordham, Interim Chief Operating Officer of the DP World ILT20, said: “We are delighted to partner with cricket’s most revered club – the Marylebone Cricket Club. We are proud to be arguably the most international T20 league, with players from 19 cricketing nations representing our six franchises this season.”
He added: “We look forward to the inaugural Spirit of Cricket Award and working closely with MCC to uphold the true values of the game.”
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