Sharjah Warriors name Tim Southee as skipper ahead of new ILT20 season

Sharjah Warriors named New Zealand’s Tim Southee as their skipper on December 27 (Thursday), ahead of the third edition of International League T20 (ILT20). Southee announced his Test retirement earlier this the month after appearing in the third Test against England, where New Zealand won by 423 runs.

The 36-year-old has plenty of experience as a captain, including captaining the New Zealand senior men's team. His experience could be valuable for Warriorz, who haven't had the best of tournaments thus far, having finishing fifth and sixth in the two seasons. 

“The Sharjah Warriorz have a fantastic squad in place, with plenty of hard-hitting batters and smart and skilful bowlers. It will be a really exciting time to captain and be around such a talented bunch of cricketers. My conversations with the team management have also been very fruitful so far, and we are confident of having a good season. I am really excited to join and lead the team,” Southee said. 

“We, at Capri Sports, are very excited to have Tim Southee join us as captain of the Sharjah Warriorz squad. His work ethic and dedication to the game of cricket are second to none and as his tenacity to keep fighting on, aligns perfectly with the Warrior spirit. Southee not only bolsters but also adds depth and experience to our squad for the upcoming edition of the ILT20. We are confident that his dynamic style of leadership will kick start a new era for us,” said Kshemal Waingankar, COO, Sharjah Warriorz.

Sharjah will kick off their season on January 12 against Gulf Giants.