West Indies stars Darren Sammy and Chris Gayle will face off on the opening day of the Global T20 Canada schedule, the match will also include Bermuda’s Kamau Leverock.
Sammy's Toronto Nationals, which includes disgraced former Australian skipper Steve Smith, will meet Gayle's Vancouver Knights on June 28th in the opening match of the inaugural 22-game season of the Twenty20 cricket league. The Knights also feature Andre Russell of the West Indies.
The Global T20 Canada features six teams: Toronto and Vancouver are joined by the Montreal Tigers, Edmonton Royals, Winnipeg Hawks and a Cricket West Indies representative B team.
The five Canadian teams are a combination of international and domestic talent.
Each team will play the five other sides in the first round June 28th to July 8th. The second round, July 10th – 11th, will see the No. 1 team versus No. 6, No. 2 versus No. 5 and No. 3 versus No. 4.
The bottom two teams in the standings will then drop out. The July 12th – 15th playoffs will see No. 1 versus No. 2 with the winner moving straight into the final. The loser will play the winner of the match between the No. 3 and 4 teams to determine the other finalist.
All of the matches will take place at the Maple Leaf Cricket Club in King City, north of Toronto.
Schedule (All times Eastern Standard Time)
First Round
June 28th: Toronto Nationals vs. Vancouver Knights - 4 p.m.
June 29th: Montreal Tigers vs. Winnipeg Hawks - 4 p.m.
June 30th: Toronto Nationals vs. Edmonton Royals - 11 a.m. Montreal Tigers vs. Cricket West Indies B Team - 4 p.m.
July 1st: Vancouver Knights vs. Winnipeg Hawks - 11 a.m. Edmonton Royals vs. Cricket West Indies B Team - 4 p.m.
July 2nd: Toronto National vs. Winnipeg Hawks - 11 a.m. Montreal Tigers vs. Vancouver Knights - 4 p.m.
July 4th: Montreal Tigers vs. Edmonton Royals - 4 p.m.
July 5th: Winnipeg Hawks vs. Cricket West Indies B Team - 4 p.m.
July 6th: Vancouver Knights vs. Edmonton Royals - 4 p.m.
July 7th: Toronto Nationals vs. Cricket West Indies B Team - 11 a.m. Winnipeg Hawks vs. Edmonton Royals - 4 p.m.
July 8th: Vancouver Knights vs. Cricket West Indies B Team - 11 a.m. Toronto Nationals vs. Montreal Tigers - 4 p.m.
Second Round
July 10th: 1st place vs. 6th place - 11 a.m. 2nd place vs. 5th place, 4 p.m.
July 11th: 3rd place vs. 4th place - 4 p.m.
Playoffs
July 12th: Playoff 1: 1st vs. 2nd - 11 a.m. Playoff 2: 3rd vs. 4th - 4 p.m.
July 14th: Playoff 3: Loser Playoff 1 vs. Winner Playoff 2 - 3 p.m.
July 15th: Championship: Winner Playoff 1 vs. Winner Playoff 3 - 3 p.m.
