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MI Emirates have named Nicholas Pooran and Kieron Pollard as their wildcards for the upcoming edition of the ILT20 in the UAE. Pooran and Pollard will reunite after lifting the Caribbean Premier League (Trinbago Knight Riders) and Major League Cricket (MI New York) together earlier this year.
Pooran also features for MI Cape Town in the SA20, a tournament which overlaps with the ILT20. The 30-year-old power-hitter made a shock retirement announcement earlier this year, but remains a hot prospect in franchise tournaments. Apart from Pooran and Pollard, MI Emirates possesses Caribbean talent, including Andre Fletcher, who topped the bidding at USD 260,000 at the inaugural ILT20 auction in October, Ackeem Auguste and Romario Shepherd, being the other two. The fourth season of the ILT20 will begin on December 2 and will run untill January 4, in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah, featuring six teams who will play a total of 34 fixtures. In the upcoming edition, former India wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik has joined Sharjah Warriorz. An IPL champion with the Mumbai Indians in 2013, Karthik was also a member of the Indian team that won both the inaugural 2007 T20 World Cup and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy. In recent years, Karthik was part of the leadership group as batting coach for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru franchise, which won its maiden IPL title in 2025. Coincidentally, at RCB in IPL 2025, Karthik worked closely with the big-hitting Tim David, one of the overseas players for the Sharjah Warriorz in Season 4 of the ILT20. MI Emirates Signings: Auction Signings: Muhammad Rohid (USD 140,000), Jordan Thompson (USD 48,000), Naveen-ul-Haq (USD 100,000), Andre Fletcher (USD 260,000), Nosthush Kenjige (USD 10,000), Mohamed Shafeeq (USD 10,000), Zain Ul Abidin (USD 10,000), Usman Khan (USD 10,000), Ackeem Auguste (USD 10,000), Arab Gul (USD 10,000), Tajinder Dhillon (USD 10,000), Zahoor Khan (USD 10,000), Shakib Al Hasan (USD 40,000). Retentions + Direct Signings: Fazalhaq Farooqi, Tom Banton, Romario Shepherd, Chris Woakes, Jonny Bairstow, AM Ghazanfar, Muhammad Waseem, Kamindu Mendis. Wildcards: Nicholas Pooran, Kieron Pollard. (ANI)
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