NAIROBI, Kenya, Jun 7 – The inaugural Ghanshyam Ten10 Cricket Tournament has suffered injury blows ahead of Saturday’s opening day, as South African all-rounder Wayne Parnell and Zimbabwean Sean Williams have been ruled out with unspecified injuries.
They will be replaced by South African Kyle Verreynne and Sri Lankan Seekkuge Prasanna, respectively.
Parnell, who last played for South Africa in March, had been drafted into the Maasai Warriors team, while Williams was set to play for Ndovu Crushers.
The tournament bowls off on Saturday at 7 PM with Mahadev Strikers taking on Hari OM. Later that evening, Prasanna will be in action for Ndovu Crushers against Ayodhya Warriors at 9 PM at the Cutchi Leva grounds in Nairobi West.
Williams’ last match for Zimbabwe was in June last year against the USA, where he scored 174 runs.
The tournament organizing committee, through Rikesh Hirani, did not specify the nature of the injuries, only stating that the players would not be fit enough for the event and thus needed replacement.
“The two are very experienced players and would have added a lot of value and entertainment to the tournament. We look forward to having them in the future,” Hirani said.
Verreynne last donned the South African colors in March last year, having played 15 Tests and 12 ODIs. Prasanna’s last assignment for Sri Lanka was in 2019 in an ODI match against New Zealand.
“While it is unfortunate to lose players of Williams’ and Parnell’s caliber, we are confident in the abilities of Verreynne and Prasanna. They have shown remarkable skills and ability in their performances, and this opportunity will allow them to further showcase their talent away from their Test colleagues. We believe they will bring a fresh and dynamic energy to the tournament,” Hirani said.
In the first match of the eight-team event, Lucas Oluoch will be hoping to have a good start as he comes up against Sachin Bhudia’s Hari OM.
Oluoch will be banking on the experience of Naman Ojha to set the tone for his troops, which includes all-rounders Sachin Gill and Maxwell Swaminathan. Neil Mugabe will also be crucial in piling up the runs for his side.
Richard Levi is expected to help Bhudia with his extensive experience, with Yuvraj Chudasama using his Ranji Trophy experience to guide the team. The side also includes Gurdeep Singh, Francis Mutua, and James Ngoche.
In the second match, Ndovu, captained by Kanbis’ Nelson Odhiambo, will rely on the likes of Ranji’s Parth Chauhan, Aman Gandhi, and Aarav Patel to stop Ayodhya Warriors, who also have a strong lineup featuring Rakep Patel, Ryan Burl, Tanazeel Sheikh, and Nehemiah Odhiambo.
