Ashwin to captain and mentor Dublin Guardians in inaugural ETPL season

Former India offspinner R Ashwin will captain and mentor Dublin Guardians in the inaugural European T20 Premier League (ETPL), joining the Dublin-based franchise owned by Rahul Dravid.

Ashwin, 39, retired from the IPL after the 2025 season but continues playing franchise cricket with San Francisco Unicorns in Major League Cricket.

The ETPL, backed by Cricket Ireland, Cricket Scotland, and the Royal Dutch Cricket Association, is Europe's first ICC-sanctioned multi-country franchise T20 league. Running from August 26 to September 20, it features six teams: Dublin Guardians, Amsterdam Flames, Rotterdam Dockers, Belfast Irish Wolves, Edinburgh Castle Rockers, and Glasgow Cosmics.

Key direct signings include:

• Rotterdam: Faf du Plessis (captain/co-owner), Heinrich Klaasen, Jonty Rhodes, Donovan Ferreira, Anrich Nortje, Mitchell Owen
• Amsterdam: Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, Michael Bracewell, Scott Edwards, Bas de Leede
• Glasgow: Lungi Ngidi, Keshav Maharaj, Duan Jansen, Finn Allen
• Edinburgh: Mitchell Santner (captain), Trent Boult
• Belfast: Glenn Maxwell (captain)
• Tim David is also a high-profile direct signing

Coaching roles include Matthew Hayden (Glasgow co-owner/head coach) and James Foster (Edinburgh head coach). Ownership includes Steve Waugh (Amsterdam), Maxwell (Belfast), Kyle Mills & Nathan McCullum (Edinburgh), and the South African trio with John Abraham (Rotterdam).

The player draft is scheduled for July 2, with the league aiming to showcase emerging talent from Ireland, Scotland, and the Netherlands alongside international stars.