BRISBANE (Australia), Aug 6: Queensland’s state cricket team will play the Indian Premier League (IPL) team the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)in a series of Twenty20 matches in Brisbane next month.

The 16-man Kolkata squad will play the Queensland first XI and a Queensland Academy of Sport team in the series of pre-season matches, Queensland officials said on Tuesday.

The Kolkata franchise, coached by former Australia coach John Bucnanan and owned by Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan, will be without Australia captain Ricky Ponting and fellow international players Chris Gayle of the West Indies, Pakistan paceman Shoaib Akhtar and New Zealand’s Brendon McCullum.

The KKR finished sixth in the inaugural IPL tournament.—AP