Lanka Premier League (LPL) franchise, Galle Marvels has roped in several local and international cricketers for the upcoming LPL 2024 cricket tournament.
Sri Lankan cricketers Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Lasith Croospulle, Maheesh Theekshana and Niroshan Dickwella will feature for Galle Marvels in this year’s LPL.
As the overseas icon player, Galle Marvels has also roped in a destructive top-order batter from England, Alex Hales, while retaining the services of New Zealand wicket-keeper batter Tim Seifert.
Meanwhile, former Sri Lankan batting legend Sanath Jayasuriya will work as the Mentor of the Galle Marvels for the LPL 2024.
The Lanka Premier League 2024 auction is scheduled to be held on the 21st of May in Colombo and the cricket tournament will be held in three venues from the 1st to the 21st of July.
Full statement:
Galle Marvels is excited to announce its direct signings and support staff ahead of the Lanka Premier League 2024 auction which is scheduled to be held on the 21st of May in Colombo.
Sri Lanka’s premier domestic T20 tournament with an international flair, the Lanka Premier League 2024, will be held in three venues from the 1st to the 21st of July.
As the overseas icon player, Galle Marvels has roped in a destructive top-order batter from England, Alex Hales, a seasoned campaigner with experience of nearly 450 T20 matches. Galle Marvels have also retained the services of New Zealand wicket-keeper batter Tim Seifert who was a part of the Galle franchise in 2023.
On the local front, Galle Marvels have retained two aggressive batters Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Lasith Croospulle to bolster their batting department. Rajapaksa has been a household name in the T20 circuits worldwide whilst Croospulle is one of the emerging talents that will be a force to reckon with in the future.
The biggest signing for the franchise which represents the Southern part of Sri Lanka is renowned T20 spinner Maheesh Theekshana who is currently in the Top 5 of the ICC Men’s T20 Bowling Rankings. 23-year-old Theekshana is the local icon player for Galle Marvels and will lead the bowling attack in the Lanka Premier League 2024. So far in 4 seasons, Theekshana has picked up 33 wickets at an impressive economy rate of 6.75.
Wicket-keeper batter Niroshan Dickwella who boasts of a strike-rate of over 140 in T20s has also been pre-signed by Galle Marvels. With his international experience, Dickwella will be a strong addition to the Marvels line-up.
Galle Marvels has also had some tremendous success in signing up several professionals in their support staff. Former Sri Lanka, South Africa, and Ireland Head Coach Graham Ford will serve as the Head Coach of the Galle Marvels whilst former Sri Lankan batting legend Sanath Jayasuriya will work as the Mentor of the Galle Marvels in addition to his role of Head Coach for Moratu Marvels.
Former Sri Lankan batter Chamara Kapugedara will work as the Assistant Coach along with Sri Lanka Cricket fielding coach Anton Roux who will be the Bowling and Fielding Coach for Galle Marvels.
Indian analyst AR Srikkanth, who has worked with the Knight Riders franchise since the inception of the Indian Premier League will provide his expertise as the Senior Performance Analyst for Galle Marvels in the upcoming five-team competition, which starts in July in Dambulla.
“We at the Galle Marvels franchise are quite happy with all our six direct signings ahead of the auction and the recruitments we have done in the support staff. We’re all geared up to complete our Galle Marvels family on the 21st of May. “ Prem Thakkar, co-owner of the Galle Marvels expressed his views.
In March, the ‘Marvels’ launched both their franchises – Galle Marvels and Moratu Marvels for the Lanka Premier League and the inaugural Lanka T10 League respectively during a gala event held in Colombo.