DUBAI: When the fourth edition of the DP World ILT20 kicks off on Dec. 2 in Dubai, there will be a difference in the way that some of the players will have been selected.
This will be by auction in Dubai on Wednesday, Oct. 1. It is the same method used by the Indian Premier League since its inception in 2008.
Then, the auctioneer was Richard Madley, who conducted a further nine IPL auctions. By quirk of circumstance, it is Madley who will conduct ILT20’s first ever auction.
It was my pleasure to be introduced to him two days prior to the auction to learn more about his experiences, skills and hopes for the ILT20. It seems that he was fated to be and auctioneer. Both his father and father-in-law were auctioneers, whilst his mother-in-law was an antiques dealer.
He started young in collecting objects and now specializes, among other things, in oriental carpets. His love for cricket began at junior school in Cardiff, Wales, where dreams and ambitions of playing professionally were nurtured.
This has been the case for many other children, who, like Madley, realized that the dreams would never be realized. However, he did represent his native Wales at hockey.
Madley has played club cricket in Surrey and is a qualified umpire, but it is with the gavel in auctioneering that he has made his mark in cricket, acquiring the sobriquet of “Hammerman” in India.
It was there, he says, that he realized that cricket had changed forever when M.S. Dhoni was bought for $1.5 million in the first IPL auction. Madley likened the event to the Wild West when nobody quite knew what they were doing.
Now, he sees his role as overseeing a fair distribution of players across franchises to achieve a balance between them. He believes that a knowledge of cricket helps in that process, as does humor.
His focus is firmly on the franchises. In the ILT20 auction he expects some surprises, but would not be drawn into more detail. There are players from upwards of thirty countries registered, so he is likely to be right.
The primary purpose of the franchise league auction has developed another wing, that of marketing and profile building. This has been evident in the IPL and was markedly so this year when the auction was held in Jeddah, sparking renewed rumors of ֱ’s motivations in cricket.
Today, these have been given a further boost by the news that DP World ILT20 is to join forces with the ֱn Cricket Federation to advance cricket in the region. In the first place, it is intended that there will be increased opportunities for Saudi players to play in international tournaments.
These are vital to nurture their development and allow them to carry their gained knowledge back into the domestic game. In the upcoming auction, each franchise must secure at least one player from ֱ, so the process is about start.
There is also an intent that, in forthcoming seasons, the partnership will witness ILT20 matches being played in ֱ. This will require the provision of facilities of appropriate standards. No timescale was specified for this ambition, but the agreement should provide a basis for its advancement.
The partnership also aligns with ILT20’s strategy to expand and enrich cricket across the Gulf region. This is already evident in its links with Kuwait Cricket with which it established a strategic partnership in June 2025 to assist in the growth and promotion of cricket in that country.
The first evidence of this was the DP World ILT20 Development Tournament, played between Sept. 4-12, 2025.
It is clear that the ILT20 is embarked on a two-pronged strategy of expanding its reach with the Gulf and enhancing its profile through the player auction initiative.
These are exciting times for cricket in the region.
