Dubai [UAE], September 11 (ANI): The fourth edition of the International League T20 (ILT20) Development Tournament will give Gulf Giants head coach Simon Helmot his first opportunity to assess the franchise’s emerging talent, with the ILT20 auction less than three weeks away, starting on October 1.
The Giants enter the tournament with returning players including Haider Razzaq and Aayan Afzal Khan, alongside Sagar Kalyan and Tanish Suri, two of last year’s leading run-scorers in the Development Tournament. UAE international and middle-order batter Sohaib Khan also joins the squad, as per a press release.
For Helmot, the focus will be on seeing the players in a competitive environment while beginning to shape his thinking ahead of the new ILT20 season.
“I am really looking forward to getting started. This is my first assignment with Gulf Giants, so it’s an important few weeks for me as well,” said Simon Helmot, Head Coach, Gulf Giants. “The first thing is to get to know the players, see how they go about their cricket and understand where we can help them improve. At the same time, we have to start thinking about what our squad could look like as we head into the auction," he added.
The tournament will also provide a platform for emerging players to make their case.
“There is some really exciting talent coming through, and that’s one of the things I’m most excited about,” Helmot said.
“You never quite know who is going to put their hand up in a tournament like this. A player can have a really strong few weeks and suddenly find themselves in the conversation for the next level. For us, it’s about giving those players an opportunity and seeing who is ready to take it," he added.
The experience of players who have competed at this level before will be valuable to the group, Helmot added.
“Players like Haider, Aayan, Sagar and Tanish know what this level is about. They can help set the standards for some of the younger players coming into the group,” he continued.
With the auction approaching, Helmot will also be watching performances across the tournament, not just within the Giants’ camp.
“We’ll certainly be watching our own players closely, but we’ll also be keeping an eye on the wider tournament,” he said. “There will be players in the other teams who catch your attention, and that’s part of what makes this tournament so important.”
Gulf Giants Development Squad
Sohaib Khan, Adeeb Usmani, Awais Ahmed, Sagar Kalyan, Junaid Shamsudheen, Ansh Tandon, Keshav Sharma, Nabeel Aziz, Muhammad Irshad, Samal Udawaththa, Mohammed Faraazuddin, Vaibhav Govekar, Tanish Suri, Albin Alias, Aayan Khan, Haider Razzaq, Zuhaib Zubair. (ANI)
Gulf Giants head coach Simon Helmot excited ahead of ILT20 Development Tournament
