Mahela Jayawardene and Muttiah Muralitharan roped in by Team Rugby for Black Clash T20
Sri Lankan maestros Mahela Jayawardene and Muttiah Muralidharan have signed up to represent Team Rugby in the second Black Clash T20 match. Team Rugby go into the clash in Napier looking to repeat history having flattened Team Cricket by five wickets in the previous fixture which was a year ago.
Cricket fans in New Zealand are in for a treat this new year as the legendary Sri Lankan duo of Mahela Jayawardene and Muttiah Muralitharan have signed up for the Black Clash T20. The Sri Lankan’s will take the field for Sir Graham Henry’s Team Rugby as they take on Stephen Fleming-led Team Cricket in Napier on January 7.
The two all-time greats of the game jumped in for their love for Rugby are set to guide Team Rugby in their quest to trample Team Cricket again. Sir Graham’s team crushed Fleming’s men by five wickets in their last outing in Churchgate. While Murlidharan’s 800 Test wickets still remains a record to be broken, Jayawardene, who is renowned for his clean hitting, is one of the few players to score more than 10,000 runs in both ODIs and Tests.
Team Rugby coach Sir Graham pointed out that despite their status as two of cricket's greats, both hold rugby dear to their hearts.
"These guys wouldn't be playing for us unless they had a rugby pedigree. To have a couple of Sri Lankan rugby players who can play a bit of cricket is going to be quite handy for us," Sir Graham told stuff.co.nz.
Meanwhile, Team Cricket coach cum captain Fleming also looks forward to the challenge of going up against two former opponents.
"Murali still gives me nightmares, so having him pop up again is a real concern. And last time I played Mahela he got a hundred in a World Cup semi-final. You couldn't ask for two better pros," admitted Fleming.
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