Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir to lead teams in Legends League

Former India players Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Harbhajan Singh and Irfan Pathan have been named captains of the franchises at Legend League Cricket (LLC). Sehwag will lead Gujarat Giants and Gambhir will take charge of India Capitals, while Pathan and Harbhajan will captain Bhilwara Kings and Manipal Tigers respectively.

The upcoming edition of LLC will feature four teams contesting 16 matches across six cities. It starts on September 16 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata followed by games in Lucknow, New Delhi, Cuttack and Jodhpur.

"I am excited to get back to the cricket ground again," Sehwag said on his appointment. "I have personally always believed in playing fearless cricket and I will continue to propagate the same brand of cricket here too. We are extremely excited and eagerly waiting for the draft to pick our team."

Gambhir said: "I have always believed cricket is a team game and a captain is as good as his team. While I will be leading the India Capitals team, I will be pushing for a spirited team who are passionate and eager to go out and win as a team."

Harbhajan was quoted as saying: "Playing alongside all great players over the years, I have picked the nuances of the game which has made me a better cricketer. I love leading from the front and I hope I can do justice to the responsibility and faith shown on me."

Pathan, who played the inaugural edition earlier this year, said, "You need to enjoy what you are doing and giving 100% to that effort is all that matters. This opportunity is unique but am confident we as a team will make some heads turn."

LLC had also announced that former India captain and current BCCI president Sourav Ganguly will lead India Maharajas in a curtain-raiser exhibition match against a World Giants team, led by former England captain Eoin Morgan, on September 16.

In all, 53 former players have been signed by the league, including Muthiah Muralidaran, Misbah-ul-Haq, Jonty Rhodes, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Shane Watson, Ross Taylor and Dale Steyn.

The squads for the exhibition match are as follows:

India Maharajas: Sourav Ganguly (capt), Virender Sehwag, Mohammad Kaif, Yusuf Pathan, S Badrinath, Irfan Pathan, Parthiv Patel (wk), Stuart Binny, Sreesanth, Harbhajan Singh, Naman Ojha (wk), Ashok Dinda, Pragyan Ojha, Ajay Jadeja, RP Singh, Joginder Sharma, Reetinder Singh Sodhi

World Giants: Eoin Morgan (capt), Lendl Simmons, Herschelle Gibbs, Jacques Kallis, Sanath Jayasuriya, Matt Prior (wk), Nathan McCullum, Jonty Rhodes, Muthiah Muralidaran, Dale Steyn, Hamilton Masakadza, Mashrafe Mortaza, Asghar Afghan, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Kevin O'Brien, Denesh Ramdin (wk)

Tendulkar to lead India legends in Road Safety World Series
Sachin Tendulkar, meanwhile, will captain defending champions India Legends in the second edition of the Road Safety World Series (RSWS).

The tournament, aimed at creating awareness on road safety, also features teams from Australia, Sri Lanka, West Indies, South Africa, Bangladesh, England and, for the first time, New Zealand. It starts on September 10 in Kanpur, with other games set to be played in Indore, Dehradun and Raipur, where the final will be played on October 1.