The England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has appointed Sporta Tours as travel partner for the new ‘North v South’ series. The announcement follows previous work for the ECB by Sporta Tours, including a pre-Ashes Series training camp in Spain for the senior team and a UAE training camp for the ECB Lions.
The three-match series will be played in Abu Dhabi every March for the next three years and Sporta Tours will manage all the travel, accommodation and team liaison requirements for the event.
The series will feature players picked by a computer programme. Four players on each team have earned automatic places via the Professional Cricketers’ Association’s Most Valued Player ratings formula. The remaining players will be chosen by the England selectors with an eye on the national team’s “strategic needs”.
“This is a good opportunity for England, domestic players and the game”, said ECB’s Director of England Cricket, Andrew Strauss.
“Finding the best players outside the current England set-up, playing them against each other in overseas conditions and placing them in an England environment will help us see if they’re ready for international cricket.”
“We’re delighted to have been chosen by the ECB to deliver what will be an important event”, said Sporta Tours Managing Director, Matthew Jackson.
“We are the preferred travel partners for a number of professional County Cricket Clubs and MCC, including the Champion County fixture, and we’re looking forward to playing a part in this new addition to the English cricketing calendar.”
Sporta Tours, formerly known as Sport Arabia Worldwide, is the leading UK-based sports tour operator for travel to the UAE. We organise bespoke tours to destinations worldwide, including Australia, Barbados, Canada, France, Holland, Nepal, New Zealand, South Africa, South America, Spain and Sri Lanka, along with the UAE.
