Thousands of cricket fans are set to descend on Edgbaston for a brand new Legends event that will rekindle some of the biggest rivalries in world cricket.
The World Championship of Legends – which gets underway on Wednesday 3 July – brings together former greats from England, India, Pakistan, Australia, West Indies and South Africa compete in T20 games across 10 days.
More than 25,000 tickets have been sold for the tournament, including almost 18,000 for a ‘Super Saturday’ double header on 6 July that sees England v Australia before India take on Pakistan.
Warwickshire great Ian Bell lines-up for England alongside the likes of Kevin Pietersen and Ravi Bopara.
Other stars on show will be Australia’s Brett Lee, West Indies’ Chris Gayle, Indian all-rounder Yuvraj Singh, Pakistan’s “Boom Boom” Shahid Afridi and Younis Khan, plus former South Africa captain Jacques Kallis.
Edgbaston plays host to round robin group games between 3-7 July. The Quarter Finals and Semi Finals move to Northamptonshire CCC’s County Ground, before Finals Day returns to Edgbaston on 13 July.
Ian Bell – who played 287 times for England in all formats – made his last Test appearance at Edgbaston during the victorious 2015 Ashes series.
He said: “It’s been a while since I’ve played for England at Edgbaston. There’s nothing quite like the buzz of playing for your country at your home ground so to do it again will be very special. There’s no better place to play than Edgbaston, the atmosphere is terrific.
“There are some big names playing in the competition – guys who pushed the boundaries during their playing days – so I’m looking forward to the challenge. It’ll be good fun but, make no mistake, we’ll all want to win. It’ll be a proper competition.”
Tickets are on sale for the World Championship of Legends which starts on Wednesday 3 July in an Edgbaston T20 double header with England v India (12.30pm) and Australia v Pakistan (4.30pm).
