Iftikhar Ahmed opens up on playing National T20 over T10 league
The 33-year-old was signed by Bangla Tigers for T10 league starting from December 28
Pakistan middle-order batter Iftikhar Ahmed has opened up on the reason for playing the country's premier domestic tournament - National T20 - instead of the Abu Dhabi T10 League.
The 33-year-old was signed by Bangla Tigers for the tournament, starting from December 28 but the batting all-rounder opted to play domestic cricket for Peshawar region.
"I had a contract in the T10 league but I cancelled it to play here in domestic cricket. I have played for Pakistan after playing domestic cricket, and playing for Pakistan is what has earned me respect, so as a player and a professional, I should also pay respect to domestic cricketers and Pakistan (by playing here)," Iftikhar said on the sidelines of National T20.
Remember, the National T20 is currently underway at four venues across Karachi. Eighteen teams are participating in the tournament.
The group stage games are currently underway which concludes on November 28. The Super Eight stage will start from December 1.
Meanwhile, Eight teams will take part in the Abu Dhabi T10 League 2023, with every team part of the round-robin format in the group stage.
The names of the teams are New York Strikers, Deccan Gladiators, Northern Warriors, Morrisville Samp Army, Delhi Bulls, Team Abu Dhabi, Chennai Braves and Bangla Tigers.
The group stage will be followed by Qualifier 1 (Team 1 vs Team 2), Eliminator (Team 3 vs Team 4), Qualifier 2 (Winner Eliminator vs Loser Qualifier 1) and the all-important Final.
All the matches of the tournament will be played at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi. The last edition of the Abu Dhabi T10 League was won by the Deccan Gladiators who beat New York Striker by 37 runs in the final.
