With Shahid Afridi in its squad, Toronto Nationals gear up for the third edition of Global T20 Canada

Shahid Afridi of Pakistan will be the star attraction of Toronto Nationals as they get ready to launch their campaign in the GT20 Canada cricket on Saturday.

The third edition of the Global T20 Canada is all set to return after a three-year pandemic-induced hiatus. Cricket fans around the world are in for a treat as six franchises gear up to battle for supremacy at the TD Cricket Arena, Brampton Sports Park.

Amongst them are the Toronto Nationals, who in the inaugural season of the competition finished at the bottom of the table but made rapid strides to turn their fortunes in the second edition securing a playoff position in the 2019 edition.

With ace pace bowler Aaqib Javed as the head coach, the Nationals will hope to leverage his experience for a title contention. Also competing in the tournament will be Mississauga Panthers, Vancouver Knights, Brampton Wolves, Montreal Tigers, and the Surrey Jaguars.

This season, the Nationals will feature a plethora of seasoned all-rounders, including the likes of the legendary power hitter and leg spinner, Shahid Afridi, Colin Munro and the Zimbabwean match winner, Sikander Raza. Sharing his eagerness for the upcoming tournament, Shahid Afridi said, “I am very excited to come to Canada and play the GT20 in Brampton, I hope people turn out in huge numbers to support the Toronto Nationals.”

The Toronto Nationals will also feature the Captain of the Canadian National team, Saad Bin Zafar. Echoing Shahid Afridi’s excitement he said, “I am excited about playing Global T20 Canada again and sharing the ground with all of the big stars that will be there. I am also looking forward to playing in a new team this season and learning from the likes of Shahid Afridi, Colin Munro and many other international players. ”

He further added, “this is a league that has opened a lot of doors for me and created opportunities in terms of going on to play in different competitive leagues around the world. As Canadian cricketers it means a lot to us, we have a lot of talent in Canada and this is an opportunity for us to raise our hands and perform well on a global stage. It is great to see the growth of cricket in Brampton.”

The Toronto Nationals squad will also comprise Fazal Farooqi, Zaman Khan, Saim Ayub, Faheem Ashraf Hamza Tariq, Gerhard Erasmus, JJ Smit, Farhan Malik, Nicholas Kirton, Armaan Kapoor, Sarmad Anwar, Rommel Shahzad and Udaha Bhagwan.

The Nationals will begin their campaign against the Vancouver Knights on July 21.

Team list for Global T20 Canada 2023

Toronto Nationals: Colin Munro, Sikander Raza*, Shahid Afridi, Fazal Farooqi, Zaman Khan, Saim Ayub, Faheem Ashraf, Hamza Tariq, Gerhard Erasmus, JJ Smit, Farhan Malik, Saad Bin Zafar, Nicholas Kirton, Armaan Kapoor, Sarmad Anwar, Rommel Shahzad, Udaha Bhagwan