The league of T20 champions begin

BANGALORE: All is set for the third edition of the Champions League T20 to get under way at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Friday night. Never mind if the injury-hit Mumbai Indians no longer look like a Mumbai or Indian outfit, so what if defending champions Chennai Super Kings have a very tired (mentally and physically ) captain leading them out on Saturday a day after Royal Challengers Bangalore field at home at least three foreign players who haven't played a game of cricket for months. This is the World Cup of club cricket and nothing can take that fact away. With a prize money of $6 million, among the players at least this has become the tournament to qualify for. You could see that in Hyderabad on Wednesday when you could not make out which team had won or lost. For both Somerset and the Kolkata Knight Riders, the entry into the main tournament was what needed to be celebrated. Talk to players from the teams that have landed in India from around the cricketing world and you will know that the CLT20 has become a must-be-there event in their calendar. The tournament as such is an open affair, the star value in the IPL teams (there are four of them around this time) being somewhat negated by the extra cohesiveness in the other outfits who play together more often. Any of the ten teams who'll be on view is capable of bagging the trophy and the $2.5 million that will come with it. For the teams from Australia and South Africa, both the advantage and disadvantage could be that they are coming out of a long break even as the lone English team that has qualified, Somerset, will hope to ride on the match practice obtained in their just- concluded first-class season. play together more often. Any of the ten teams who'll be on view is capable of bagging the trophy and the $2.5 million that will come with it. For the teams from Australia and South Africa, both the advantage and disadvantage could be that they are coming out of a long break even as the lone English team that has qualified, Somerset, will hope to ride on the match practice obtained in their just- concluded first-class season.