NEW DELHI: Sri Lanka’s Tillakaratne Dilshan, New Zealand’s Nathan McCullum and India’s Ajit Agarkar are the latest cricketers to join a host of former stars for the inaugural St. Moritz Ice Cricket to be held in Switzerland from February 8 and 9.
While Dilshan is the best rated Sri Lankan player in run-chases in the ODI history, McCullum and Agarkar had represented New Zealand and India in more than 150 and 200 international matches, respectively.
The unique two-day event is set against the serene and breath-taking backdrop of the Swiss mountains which will host two matches in two days.
The lake freezes into an extremely thick layer of ice which then gets covered by the soft falling snow, enabling the lake to withstand more than 200 tons of weight, which makes it the perfect area to construct a pavilion village and grandstands to watch and support the festivities.
The two teams, Badrutt’s Palace DIAMONDS and ROYALS already have star-studded cricketers like Shahid Afridi, Virender Sehwag, Mohammad Kaif, Mahela Jayawardene, Lasith Malinga, Shoaib Akhtar, Michael Hussey, Graeme Smith, Jacques Kallis, Daniel Vettori, Nathan McCullum, Grant Elliot, Monty Panesar, Owais Shah, to name a few.
Besides the two matches, the itinerary will also boast of a scenic tour of the Swiss local and a gala dinner where the fans will get a chance to rub shoulders with their favorite cricket personalities.
According to Vijay Singh, CEO, VJ Sports, “We are good to go to make history and are extremely eager to see all these amazing players to take on the challenge and give their fans a lot to cheer about. The special viewpoint is, obviously, the 22 yards offering an approach to snow as opposed to the standard soiled one."
He further adds, “With the approval from International Cricket Council (ICC), the St. Moritz Ice Cricket has the potential to become a flagship property for the recognizing benefactors of the diversion everywhere throughout the globe.”
The cricketers will make use of the traditional cricketing gear, including the red-ball, but will don sports shoes instead of spikes.