Shahid Afridi, Chris Gayle and Rashid Khan to be torchbearers of new T20 league

A total of five teams will be a part of the T20 league from across Paktia, Kabul, Balkh, Nangarhar and Kandahar.

Former Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi, West Indies legend Chris Gayle, Afghanistan star Rashid Khan, swashbuckling opener Brendon McCullum and West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell will be the torch-bearers in the inaugural edition of the Afghanistan Premier League. They have all been named ‘icon’ players in the T20 league that gets underway on October 5.

Shahid Afridi has continued to play in various T20 leagues across the globe after retiring from international cricket. (Getty Images)

A total of five teams will be a part of the league from across Paktia, Kabul, Balkh, Nangarhar and Kandahar. As per the rules and regulations of the league, each squad must have five overseas players and one associate player apart from the local players.

The 17-day tournament will have international stars like Chris Jordan, Thisara Perera, Luke Ronchi, Wayne Parnell, Colin Munro, Ravi Bopara, Mitchell McClenaghan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mohammad Hafeez, Ben Cutting and Wahab Riaz as per the official website of the Afghanistan Cricket Board.

Squads: Paktia: Shahid Afridi, Thisara Perera, Mohammad Shahzad, Cameron Delport, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Samiullah Shinwari, Chris Jordan, Faheem Ashraf, Luke Wright, Amatullah Omerzai, Rahmanullah Garbaz, Zia Urhaman Akber, Calum Macleod, Tahir Adil, Yousaf Zazi, Fazal Zazai

Balkh: Chris Gayle, Colin Munro, Mohammad Nabi, Ravi Bopara, Aftab Alam, Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Irfan, Ben Laughlin, Karman Akmal, Qais Ahmed, Usman Ghani, Ikrain Alikhil, Ryan ten Doeschate, Tariq Skanikai, Asadullah Matani, Samiullah Salarzai, Farhan Zakhil, Mohammad Nawaz, Darwish Rasooli

Nangarhar: Andre Russell, Tamim Iqbal, Mujeeb Zadran, Ben Cutting, Shafiqullah Shafaq, Najibullah Taraki, Mitchell McClenaghan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mohammad Hafeez, Rahmat Shah, Naveen Ul Haq, Zahir Khan, Sandeep Lamichhane, Fazal Haq, Imran Janat, Nasratullah Quarishi, Khyber Omar, Ibrahim Zadran, Faal Nazai

Kandahar: Brendon McCullum, Wahab Riaz, Asghar Afghan, Paul Stirling, Najibullah Zadran, Karim Janat, Tymal Mills, Sam Billings, Iftkhar Ahmed, Hamza Hotak, Karim Sadeq, Sayed Shirzad, Mohammad Naveed, Waqar, Abdul Baqi, Waheed Shafaq, Waqarullah Ishaq, Nazir Jamal