July 25, 2007	Wednesday	Rajab 09, 1428

NEW DELHI, July 24: Cricket stars Brian Lara and Shane Warne are set to play in a multi-million dollar rebel series in India later this year, it was revealed on Tuesday. West Indian Lara, 38, confirmed he will take part in the Indian Cricket League being promoted by the country’s largest listed media group Zee Telefilms.

Warne, 37, Test cricket’s leading bowler who retired earlier this year, has been linked to the series ever since it was officially unveiled by Zee supremo Subhash Chandra in May.

The ICL features six teams, each featuring four international players, two Indian stars and eight upcoming cricketers playing Twenty20 matches across India.

The dates and venues for the series, which has not been recognised by the International Cricket Council (ICC) or the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), have yet to be announced.

The ICL, which carries a winner’s purse of one million dollars, is reminiscent of the late Australian TV mogul Kerry Packer’s World Cricket Series that took on the establishment in 1977.—AFP