This weekend, we will once again get to witness the most talented disabled cricketers in the country going head to head on the field in their annual showcase tournament - the Disability Premier League.
Launched last year, the DPL was a huge success, with the final shown live on Sky Cricket. All games will be live streamed this year, and once again Sky have committed to showing the final live on their channel, ahead of the England Women vs Sri Lanka Women IT20 at Derby on 6th September, which opens the world of disability cricket up to a global audience, giving it the platform it so richly deserves to have.
This year, the DPL is bigger and better, and a draft of disability cricketers was held earlier this year in February to determine which lucky 64 players would feature in this year's T20 DPL competition.
The draft was over subscribed, which is testament to how much disability cricket has grown in recent years, and to the talent that exists within it. Whilst an oversubscription left some players disappointed to not be involved, it has created a healthy pool of reserves who can step in should the need arise.
We are thrilled to announce that of the 64 players selected to play in the competition this year, fourteen of them are Middlesex cricketers.
There are four teams in the tournament, each containing a squad of sixteen players; The Black Cats, The Hawks, The Pirates and The Tridents.
The fourteen Middlesex players selected to take part this year, and the teams they are representing are as follows:
Our congratulations go to all fourteen players who have been selected. We have little doubt that you will do yourselves and Middlesex Cricket proud in the tournament.
This year's competition also sees some new rules added, adding an exciting new dimension to each of the matches;
The tournament runs over four weeks, from this weekend, culminating in the final on the 6th September 2023 at Derbyshire's County Ground.
DPL Fixtures are as follows:
Week One - Sunday 20th August at Neston Cricket Club
Week Two - Sunday 27th August at Valley End Cricket Club
Week Three - Sunday 3rd September at Loughborough University Campus
The Final - 12.30pm Wednesday 6th September at the Incora County Ground Derby
We wish all fourteen Middlesex players and all other participants every success in the coming month's competition.
