A galaxy of stars will be on the field at Lord’s to help raise funds for the refurbishment of five cricket stadia in the Caribbean that were damaged by hurricanes in 2017.
Sometimes, what happens as a result of a cricket match is more important than the match itself.
When ICC World XI face off against the Windies at Lord’s, it will be one such occasion. Much as the 40 overs of cricket out in the middle will be in focus, it’s the money earned from the match, which will go towards the refurbishment of five cricket stadia in the Caribbean that were damaged by Hurricanes Irma and Maria last year, that will be the bigger picture.
Cricketers have come together for good causes often in the past, as recently as when a World XI side went across to Lahore to play three Twenty20 Internationals in September in a bid to help top-drawer cricket return to Pakistan.
Keeping that in mind, it’s quite poignant that Shahid Afridi, a Pakistani legend, will lead the World XI side at Lord’s for the one-off T20I on today, Thursday, 31 May. Eoin Morgan, England’s limited-overs leader, was originally supposed to captain the side, but a broken finger sustained during a One-Day Cup match on 27 May has put him out of action, leading to Afridi being promoted.
The World XI team, though studded with fantastic cricketers from around the world, has only a few other players with captaincy experience at the international level – of them, Thisara Perera is the present Sri Lanka T20I captain, while some others like Shoaib Malik and Rashid Khan have led their national teams in the past.
The World XI side, in fact, has had more than a few changes since being formally announced.
The match will be streamed LIVE on the ICC Facebook page.
Squads :
ICC World XI:
Shahid Afridi (captain), Sam Billings, Sam Curran, Tamim Iqbal, Tymal Mills, Dinesh Karthik, Rashid Khan, Sandeep Lamichhane, Mitchell McClenaghan, Shoaib Malik, Thisara Perera, Luke Ronchi (wicketkeeper), Adil Rashid
West Indies: Carlos Brathwaite (captain), Samuel Badree, Rayad Emrit, Andre Fletcher, Chris Gayle, Evin Lewis, Ashley Nurse, Keemo Paul, Rovman Powell, Denesh Ramdin (wicketkeeper), Andre Russell, Marlon Samuels, Kesrick Williams
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