Zim Afro T10 League, the first edition of the tournament, will be played entirely in Harare, between July 20 and July 29, 2023.

There will be five teams in the inaugural edition: Bulawayo Braves, Cape Town Samp Army, Durban Qalandars, Harare Hurricanes, and Joburg Buffaloes.

After the auction, Bulawayo and Durban have 15-member squads; the Joburg squad has 16 players; and Cape Town and Harare both have 17 cricketers.

In addition to this, all five teams will have to pick at least one more cricketer from Zimbabwe’s nationwide Emerging Player scouting programme.

Indian cricketers seldom feature at global franchise leagues. To get a no-objection certificate from the BCCI, they have to retire from every level of Indian cricket. The Zim Afro T10 2023, however, will feature six Indians, all of whom were active cricketers not too long ago.

Zim Afro T10 squad 2023: Full list of India players

Career statistics are for all T20

Stuart Binny (Cape Town Samp Army): M 150; R 1641, SR 126; W 73, Ec 7.58

A hitter down the order and a medium-pace bowler who can swing the ball, Binny featured in the ICL, had a long IPL stint, and still holds the best ODI bowling figures for India.

Parthiv Patel (Cape Town Samp Army): M 204; R 4300, SR 124; C 113, St 31

Still only 38, Parthiv has played IPL for six different teams. While wicketkeeping is his forte, his batting – often at the top – has been sound enough for teams to include him as a specialist batter.

Robin Uthappa (Harare Hurricanes): M 291; R 7272, SR 133; C 131, St 39

In 2007, Uthappa became part of India’s T20 World Cup winning side. In 2014, he became the first cricketer from an IPL-winning side to win the Orange Cap. He can bat up and down the order; keep wicket; and is one of a handful of Indians to feature in an overseas T20 league – for the Dubai Capitals in the ILT20.

Irfan Pathan (Harare Hurricanes): M 181; R 2020, SR 124; W 173, Ec 7.60

A left-arm swing bowler and capable hitter down the order, Irfan was the Player of the Match in the inaugural T20 World Cup final, in 2007, and had stints with five IPL franchises as well as for the Kandy Tuskers in the Lanka Premier League.

S Sreesanth (Harare Hurricanes): M 65; W 54, Ec 8.36

Sreesanth’s catch of Misbah-ul-Haq famously sealed the 2007 T20 World Cup for India. A bowler of considerable pace, even at 40, he has played for three IPL franchises.

Yusuf Pathan (Joburg Buffaloes): M 274; R 4852, SR 139; W 99, Ec 7.63

A ferocious hitter who can bat anywhere in the line-up, he also bowls off-spin, sometimes in the powerplay. He was Uthappa’s teammate at the Dubai Capitals in the ILT20.

Bulawayo Braves: No Indian cricketer

Durban Qalandars: No Indian cricketer

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