JAMMU: Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) are making rapid strides in cricket and sport in general and the state governor Satya Pal Malik is extremely keen on the region being represented with a separate team of its own in the Indian Premier League (IPL), Hindustan Times reports.
Malik claimed that the government is in talks with the chairman of the IPL, Rajiv Shukla to work on a plan which will involve a team from the state as well as hosting some matches there.
“I am working with IPL chairman Rajiv Shukla on the idea of having an IPL team for J&K. Very soon IPL matches will be played in J&K,” Malik told HT on the sidelines of an event launching the Central government’s new ‘Swacchta Hi Seva’ campaign.
So far, J&K has been represented in the IPL by three players who have played for Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kings XI Punjab (KXIP).
Parvez Rasool is one of the state’s star players, having also played for India in an ODI and T20I so far. Manzoor Ahmad Dar was in the Punjab squad in IPL 2018 and was bought for Rs 2 million. And lastly, Mithun Manhas, who is renowned as a stalwart of Delhi cricket, is of J&K origin and has played for many teams in the IPL such as Delhi Daredevils, Pune Warriors India and Chennai Super Kings. He is the assistant coach of KXIP at present.
