When Major League Cricket makes its DFW debut on July 13, there will more than just action on the Grand Prairie Stadium pitch.
Fans also will be treated to action in the skies with a custom drone show, aerial aerobatics, and a post-game fireworks display.
The hometown Texas Super Kings will host the Los Angeles Knight Riders at 7:30 p.m., with both teams providing branded team giveaways to fans for the historic occasion.
“The opening night of Major League Cricket will be an unforgettable experience for fans on and off the field. The drone show, fireworks and the pageantry traditional to American sporting events will provide a thrilling stage for the world’s best cricketers competing in the inaugural match of Major League Cricket,” Major League Cricket co-founder Sameer Mehta said in a statement.
The aerobatic aerial display will feature a GB1 GameBird, a British single-engine, two-seat, aerobatic aircraft.
During the innings break, a 12-minute drone show produced by Fort Worth-based Sky Elements will showcase the arrival of the six new teams competing in Major League Cricket with their logos animated in the sky along with other elements celebrating the first night of a new era in American cricket.
In 2022, Sky Elements broke a Texas record and spread a little holiday cheer as well.
To attract attention for the North Richland Hills toy drive benefitting the Community Enrichment Center, Sky Elements presented a “1,001 Drones Holiday Show” over the Birdville ISD Fine Arts/Athletic Complex. The 1,001-drone light show broke the previous Texas record of a 1,000-drone show presented by Intel, according to WFAA.
Major League Cricket is the first professional Twenty20 cricket championship in the United States and is exclusively sanctioned by USA Cricket. Major League Cricket will feature top players from around the globe while also providing an opportunity for domestic cricketers to showcase their talents to a global audience, bringing world-class T20 cricket to America for the first time.
For those unfamiliar with the sport, Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on a field at the center of which is a 22-yard pitch with a wicket at each end.
Twenty20 is a shortened game format of cricket.
It was introduced at the professional level by the England and Wales Cricket Board in 2003. In a Twenty20 game, the two teams have a single innings each, which is restricted to a maximum of 20 overs, or 120 legal balls.
Superstar players set to take part include Afghanistan T20 captain Rashid Khan, South African internationals Faf du Plessis and David Miller, West Indians Sunil Narine, Kieron Pollard and Andre Russell, Australians Marcus Stoinis and Aaron Finch, England’s Jason Roy, Zimbabwe’s Sikandar Raza, Sri Lankan Wanindu Hasaranga, India’s Ambati Rayudu and New Zealand’s Trent Boult.
The league said that after the match, fireworks will provide the finale for Grand Prairie Stadium’s opening night.
The new 7,200 cricket-specific venue will play host to 12 matches in the American professional cricket championship, running from July 13 to July 30.
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