Lanka Premier League player draft to be conducted on July 5

With less than a month left in the third season of the Lanka Premier League (LPL), the player will be held on July 5. The third season of LPL will start on July 31 and the teams are looking to build their squads for the upcoming season. A total of 353 players will appear in the draft. Five teams such as Jaffna Kings, Kandy Warriors, Colombo Stars, Dambulla Giants, and Galle Gladiators will pick players.

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Out of these players, 180 players will be from across the globe while 173 will be local players. The player draft will be held at 5 PM virtually. The LPL Governing Committee and franchise members such as team management and coaches will participate in the event. The event will be conducted for 20 rounds. Talking about the players, they are divided into different categories.

The categories will be ‘‘International Ruby,’ ‘International Sapphire,’ ‘International Diamond ‘A,’ and ‘B,’ and International Platinum for overseas players. For the local players, ‘Gold Round’ is for the young and upcoming players from U23 teams. Two players will be picked by each team from this category. The teams can retain six players out of which four can be local and the rest will be overseas players.

Notably, the teams can also sign four players before the draft. Two will be local and the rest will be overseas. The teams will be looking to build a squad of 20 players which is maximum limit for the squads. Out of 20, 14 will be Lankans and six will be overseas. The tournament will start on July 31 but the schedule is yet to announce. Jaffna Kings will be the defending champions for the second time in the tournament, having won the 2020 and 2021 seasons.

The tournament will conclude on August 21. R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo will host the league games while the MRICS in Hambantota will host the Qualifiers, Eliminator and final. The tournament will be concluded before the Asia Cup which will start in late August.