The much-awaited Global Canada T20 League has finally started today, local time 04:00 PM (IST 01:30 AM June 29). In February 2018, the International Cricket Council (ICC) sanctioned the tournament and in May, the commencement of the league was finalized. Earlier this month, the event came under the scanner as the contacts, schedule and flight details of the franchises weren’t declared.

Schedule of the tournament was finalized in the mid of this month itself. 22 matches will be played between six participating franchises over a period of 18 days. There will be a total of four rounds. Every team will face each other at least once in the first round, consisting a total of 15 matches.

The second and the third round, three-three matches will be played, with the final scheduled to take place on July 15. All the matches will be played at the Maple Leaf North-West Ground in King City. The buzz of the tournament has been hiped a lot and hence, the T20 extravaganza is expected to be quite successful as well.

Here are the details of the franchises taking part in the league:

Toronto Nationals

The team will be led by the two-time World T20 champions skipper Darren Sammy and the squad comprising off some stars like Steve Smith, Kieron Pollard, Johnson Charles, Kamran Akmal and Anton Devcich. Mohammad Sami, Kesrick Williams, Rumman Raees and Naveed Ahmed are among the speedsters. Rohan Mustafa, the skipper of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will also be featuring in teh squad.

Squad: Darren Sammy(c), Steven Smith, Kieron Pollard, Kamran Akmal, Hussain Talat, Rumman Raees, Nikhil Dutta, Johnson Charles, Kesrick Williams, Naveed Ahmad, Farhan Malik, Usama Mir, Rohan Mustafa, Nitish Kumar, Nizakat Khan, Mohammad Umair, Anton Devcich, Mohammad Sami

ALSO READ: Steve Smith Smashes Fifty In His Comeback Match 

Montreal Tigers

The Sri Lankan pacer Lasith Malinga is leading the team and will get the support of his fellow countrymen Thisara Perera, Dasun Shanaka, Isuru Udana. Dwayne Smith, Mohammad Hafeez, Sikandar Raza will be the donning the cricketing duties. Sunil Narine, the sneaky all-rounder from the Windies, will also play. Youngster Sandeep Lamichhane also gets his chance.

Squad: Lasith Malinga(c), Sunil Narine, Thisara Perera, Mohammad Hafeez, Denesh Ramdin, Sandeep Lamichhane, Sikandar Raza, Dasun Shanaka, Isuru Udana, George Worker, Najibullah Zadran, Cecil Pervez, Ibrahim Khaleel, Dillon Heyliger, Nicholas Kirton, Rayyan Pathan, Dwayne Smith, Moises Henriques, Peter Siddle, Kevon Cooper

Vancouver Knights Squad

VK is one of the teams which has an immense amount of firepower in their batting as they have Chris Gayle as their opener and he will be leading the squad as well. He has Andre Russell, Chadwick Walton and Sheldon Cottrell are his mates from the Caribbean islands. Tim Southee’s vital experience will also come handy for the team along with the quirky leg-breaks of Fawad Ahmed.

Squad: Chris Gayle(c), Andre Russell, Evin Lewis, Tim Southee, Chadwick Walton, Fawad Ahmed, Babar Hayat, Sheldon Cottrell, Saad Bin Zafar, Ruvindu Gunasekera, Srimantha Wijeratne, Kamau Leverock, Steven Jacobs, Salman Nazar, Rassie van der Dussen, Jeremy Gordon

ALSO READ: T20 right vehicle for globalizing international cricket

Winnipeg Hawks Squad

The Hawks will be led by none other than DJ Bravo, the highest wicket-taker in all T20s. David Warner, who is currently serving a one-year ban from Australian domestic and International cricket, is also a part of the team and is also expected to be their batting spearhead. They also have the likes of David Miller, Lendl Simmons, and David Miller, who are the veterans of the shortest format. Fast bowler Fidel Edwards will also be in action.

Squad: Dwayne Bravo(c), David Miller, David Warner, Lendl Simmons, Darren Bravo, Fidel Edwards, Rayad Emrit, Ben McDermott, Ali Khan, Hamza Tariq, Junaid Siddique, Tion Webster, Rizwan Cheema, Hiral Patel, Mark Deyal, Kyle Phillip

Edmonton Royals Squad

Former Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi will lead the Royals with the help of his fellow countrymen Umar Akmal, Sohail Tanvir, and Mohammad Irfan. Tanvir and Irfan are also their premier pacers. Explosive batsman Luke Ronchi also be seen along with Farhaan Behardien, Andre Fletcher, Wayne Parnell and Shaiman Anwar.

Squad: Shahid Afridi(c), Luke Ronchi, Mohammad Irfan, Sohail Tanvir, Christiaan Jonker, Wayne Parnell, Asif Ali, Hasan Khan, Agha Salman, Shaiman Anwar, Satsimranjit Dhindsa, Ahmed Raza, Abraash Khan, Ammar Khalid, Simon Pervez, Umar Akmal, Farhaan Behardien, Andre Fletcher

ALSO READ: Attiitude.com signs Gayle as global brand ambassador

CWI B Team 

Anthony Bramble, the seasoned first-class player from Guyana, will be leading the squad. However, the focus will be on Nicholas Pooran, the only international player on the team. They will be locking horns with teams, which has other stars from the Windies. The team will is expected to be one of the dark horses of the tournament.

Squad: Anthony Bramble(c), Fabian Allen, Alick Athanaze, Roland Cato, Justin Greaves, Derval Green, Kavem Hodge, Brandon King, Jeremiah Louis, Obed McCoy, Khary Pierre, Nicholas Pooran, Sherfane Rutherford, Shamar Springer

Broadcasters

India- Star Sports 1, Star Sports 1 HD

Canada- Asian Television Network (ATN)

Caribbean- Sportsmax

UK- FreeSports

Australia- Fox Sports

Pakistan- Geo Sports

Middle-East- Orbit Showtime Network

Bangladesh- Ghazi TV