Warriors don’t back down, says captain Daren Sammy

The Warriors have acquired some formidable players like Dwayne Smith, Wahab Riaz, Lendl Simmons, Andre Russell and Ravi Bopara

“We are the warriors and warriors don’t back down,” said Darren Sammy with a beaming smile.

Northern Warriors, the new addition to the T10 League, launched their jersey in Dubai on Tuesday.

And Sammy, their captain and icon player, said his men will play like warriors when the second edition of the tournament (November 23-December 2) begins in two months’ time.

With former India all-rounder Robin Singh as the head coach, Sammy is confident that Northern Warriors can go all the way.

“I am very excited to be with the Warriors. I will bring all my experience as captain. It’s wonderful to have Robin (Singh) in our team and I am confident of achieving some great things,” Sammy, the only captain to have won two World T20 titles, said at the press conference on Tuesday.

The Warriors have acquired some formidable players – Dwayne Smith, Wahab Riaz, Lendl Simmons, Andre Russell and Ravi Bopara – for the tournament.

“It’s a strong team. You obviously feel great as captain when you have so many exciting players – like Lendl Simmons. Well, everybody knows Lendl’s ability. He was the one who took us to the World T20 final in 2018 with a magnificent 80 in the semi-finals against India,” Sammy said.

“He has played cricket all over the world. He opens the batting and up to this year, he was the leading run scorer in CPL,” Sammy added,

Robin Singh, who played 136 One-Day Internationals for India, was naturally delighted with the squad. “It’s a very good team. There are some very experienced limited overs players in this team,” Singh said at the press conference.

Singh was especially pleased to have Pakistan fast bowler Wahab in his team.

“It’s really great to have someone like Wahab. He has been a proven performer for such a long time. I think Pakistan have missed a trick by not picking Wahab. He is a really smart bowler.”

Singh said Bopara’s intelligence will help the Warriors.

“In shorter formats, it’s the intelligence that matters. Ravi is very clever. I know that because I have worked with him in the past,” Singh added.

Co-owners brimming with confidence

Northern Warriors co-owners Shahbaz Elias and Mohomed Morani are confident of winning the second edition of the T10 League.

“If you see our team, we have quite a few West Indian players. They are the best players in the shortest formats of the game,” Morani told Khaleej Times at a press conference on Tuesday.

“The West Indians are fighters. They play like a team. They will follow the logo of the team warriors. As our captain Darren Sammy says, our team will never back down,” Morani said.

Elias, on the other hand, was excited to be involved with cricket for the first time.

“I have a long association with Mohomed. But this is the first time I will be with him in cricket. I am confident that our team will do very well,” Elias said.