As the much awaited third season of Andhra Premier League (APL) is about to begin from June 30, the Andhra Cricket Association (ACA) unveiled its new trophy amid much fanfare in a curtain-raiser event held here on Saturday.
The event also saw all the six teams — Bezawada Tigers, Uttarandhra Lions, Godavari Titans, Rayalaseema Kings, Vizag Warriors, and Coastal Raiders — unveil their new jerseys followed by new song ‘Mana Andhra Mana APL’.
Mr. Narendra Ram from Vizag Warriors, its captain and India wicketkeeper batsman K. Srikar Bharat have unveiled their team jersey. Mr. Bharat said that he is looking forward for an exciting contest in this APL. He said that the team looks well balanced this season.
Mr Srinivasa Reddy from ‘Bezawada Tigers’ and the captain Ricky Bhui unveiled their jersey. Mr. Bhui said that APL has been a great opportunity for the budding players to showcase their talent.
Mr P. Harish from Godavari Titans and the captain C.R. Gnaneswar unveiled their new jersey. The Godavari Titans has picked up latest sensation and young cricketer Nitish Kumar Reddy for ₹16.5 lakh this season, the highest ever bid for any player in the APL so far. However, recently he was injured and was dropped from the 15-member team touring Zimbabwe next month.
Mr. Harish said that at present, Nitish Kumar is at National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru and they are expecting him to recover from the injury and join the team soon.
Ravi Krishna Reddy and Ramakrishna Reddy from Uttarandhra Lions along with their new captain C. Gulfaam Saleh unveiled their team jersey. Mr. Gulfaam said that the team environment is very positive and the boys are excited to take part in the league.
Mr Venkatadri from Coastal Riders and the team’s vice captain Abhishek Reddy have unveiled their jersey. Coastal Riders won the first season of the APL and stood as runners in the second season. The team captain Sheikh Rasheed is at the NCA and is expected to join soon.
Defending champions, ‘Rayalaseema Kings’ have unveiled their jersey in the presence of owner Dasaradha Ramareddy and th new captain Girinadh Reddy.
Mr Reddy said that definitely there is a bit of pressure being defending champions. He said that the auction went well for their team with a mix of seniors and juniors. The recent practice camp at Anantapur went well, he said.
Speaking during the programme, ACA secretary S.R. Gopinath Reddy reiterated that the APL has become a platform for the budding cricketers from Andhra Pradesh to showcase their talent and attract selectors. He said many players like K.S. Bharat and Nitish Kumar Reddy have made a mark.
He said that for the first time they have organised APL Rising Stars to select players who do not belong any cricket body. Over 3,000 young cricketers attended the programme in which seven players were picked up. Now, those seven players are now representing in all these APL teams, he said.
As per the ACA, the season 3 is getting bigger and better. The first season had a viewership of 88 lakh, while the second season had 1.18 crore viewership. They are expecting the viewership to cross two crore this season.
Featuring six teams, the APL will have 19 matches, and 120 players competing from June 30 to July 13. The tournament will follow a round-robin format in the group stage, with all the matches scheduled in the scenic Dr YSR ACA VDCA Stadium. All matches will be broadcast live on Star Sports Telugu and Star Sports First.
