Everything you need to know about the 6 MCL teams

The stage is set for the legends of the game to take each other on one more time with the inaugural edition of the Masters Champions League getting underway in the UAE on 28 January 2016. The 6-team event features a host of retired players including some of the true greats of the game.Each of the six teams will take on the other five in the round robin stage and the top four will qualify for the semi-finals. The two venues where the teams will be playing their matches are the Dubai International Cricket Stadium and the Sharjah Cricket Association Stadium.The franchises, which have been named after 6 zodiac signs, picked their respective squads at the auction which took place last month. Here’s everything you wanted to know about the different MCL teams:

#1 Gemini Arabians

Owned by: Nalin Khaitan, the captain of Interface cricket team that plays in UAE’s domestic cricket

Captain: Virender Sehwag

Icon Player: Muttiah Muralitharan

Strengths: The Arabians have a batting line-up to envy with the likes of Virender Sehwag, Kumar Sangakkara, Brad Hodge and Richard Levi bolstering their ranks. They also boast of a spin attack of epic proportions with 800-man Muttiah Muralitharan and Pakistani great Saqlain Mushtaq leading the way for them. 

Weaknesses: Allrounders may be an area of concern for Gemini Arabians with Justin Kemp and Brad Hodge being the only primary options in the team. Their pace attack also does not look up to the mark.

Opening Game: vs Libra Legends, 28 January 2016, Dubai

Predicted XI: Kumar Sangakkara (wk), Virender Sehwag (c), Brad Hodge, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Jacques Rudolph, Richard Levi, Justin Kemp, Saqlain Mushtaq, Kyle Mills, Muttiah Muralitharan, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan