“For the fans in the UAE, we will be rolling-out a number of fun, engaging activities,” Usmani said
Mubashir Usmani, the secretary general of the Emirates Cricket Board, is upbeat about the present and the future of the International T20 League, played in the UAE. In an interview, he opens up on the first impression of the event, feedback from the stakeholders, what’s on offer for the fans and the impact this could have on the UAE national side.
Excerpts:
What are your first impressions about the event?
One of immediate, immense satisfaction and great pride in the team who have brought us to this moment.
How is the initial feedback of the stakeholders who have pumped in money into the tournament – the franchises and broadcaster?
Positive, encouraging and supportive. It is incredibly rewarding to have progressive-minded partners who have strong business foresight and acumen. Not only have they invested financially, but they have invested intrinsically through their well-experienced resources and processes. The league’s strategy and planning committee is working closely with the stakeholders to assess and implement timely, effective measures to deliver a successful inaugural edition for all partners, as well as for the years to come.
Onboarding high profile owners like SRK, Adani, Ambani and Glazers is a big coup by you but are the owners happy with the way it has panned out so far?
As mentioned above, owners of the league’s franchise teams are also actively involved in the league’s pro-active strategy and planning committee discussions, and they are very comfortable with how the league launched and with the delivery and the coverage – broadcast and media – of the first two games.
The digital concurrence numbers are apparently very high at 1.5 million on Zee Five for the opening ceremony and the match although on ground that kind of popularity was not reflected. What can you say about it?
Firstly, we are extremely pleased to see the interest in the broadcast, collectively the viewership is exceptionally encouraging and both our global broadcaster – Zee, and our franchise partners are happy with how the league has started.
UAE is host to a large number of expatriates who have cricket as their favourite sport, this with the UAE having a rich history of successfully hosting some of the biggest T20 tournaments – including last year’s ICC Men’s T20 WC, combined with some of the highest-profile players and franchise-names in the sport, sees us confident in attracting good attendance as the league progresses.
What is to be looked forward to in the coming days?
For the fans in the UAE, we will be rolling-out a number of fun, engaging activities and initiatives for families and for cricket-loving adults alike. The intensity of the competition will heat-up as the teams aim to position themselves at the top of the league’s table, the viewer at home and abroad, through the top-quality production and broadcast, is in for an absolute feast of engaging, thrilling cricketing action.
The big and obvious question is your competition with SA20. Was the clash avoidable and will there be different windows going forward from next season?
While it is true that this window is packed with a lot of T20 franchises as well as all-format bilateral cricket we are very confident of creating our own impression both for fans at the three world-class venues, as well as those who will watch the tournament around the world.
The window we have locked-in for, being January 13th to February 12th (2023) is optimal playing conditions in the UAE, and while this window suits our purpose, we will, through our strategy committee and partners, assess and work toward minimising other League-date clashes.
It took 10 years in the IPL for owners to make profit. What can you say about ILT20?
We have an achievable business and strategy model in place, which all stakeholders and owners acknowledge and fully support.
Finally everyone says it will help develop the UAE cricket team. As the head of ECB how much time do you give yourself to see that happening?
This will be a continual development strategy. It is important to recognise that Emirates Cricket already enjoys successful International UAE Cricket performances – our men have competed in a number of, including the recent, T20 WC – Karthik Meiyappan who is a member of the Sharjah Warriors player set-up was the first player to achieve a hattrick, and our U19 women are currently competing in the first-ever ICC U19 Women’s T20 WC and won their opening match against Scotland.
The base is there, exposing our men’s players to some of the best resources and minds in the cricketing world will definitely elevate their skills, and through commitment from the league, funds will be used to support central contracts for the UAE women’s team as well as pick the cost of full time women development officer.
