Atapattu appointed Belagavi Panthers' mentor; Veda Krishnamurthy ambassador

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Bengaluru, August 16: Belagavi Panthers has appointed former Sri Lanka captain and coach Marvan Atapattu as the mentor for the upcoming edition of the Karnataka Premier League.

Atapattu will join the squad on September 4 and will be with them for the duration of the tournament.

Ali Asfak Thara, owner of Belagavi Panthers, said: "We are delighted to have Atapattu on board as a mentor for Belagavi Panthers. We are sure his experience in the international arena will bring a lot of exposure to our players, and will help them reach the next level."

Atapattu played 90 Tests and 268 ODIs for Sri Lanka. He scored 5,502 Test runs, including16 hundreds, and 8,529 ODI runs comprising 11 hundreds.

Atapattu was thrilled with the opportunity. "I am happy and excited to work with the team and pass on my experience and expertise to the players," he said.

Before Atapattu joins the squad, Panthers will travel to Dubai to train at the ICC Academy from August 20 to 26. They may also play train under lights at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium (DICS).

The squad's sessions at the ICC Academy will be supervised by Jacob Oram, the former New Zealand all-rounder.

Indian women's cricket star Veda Krishnamurthy, meanwhile, has been appointed as the brand ambassador of the franchise.

"We are really pleased to appoint one of the leading icons of women's cricket - Veda - as our brand ambassador. Veda will also be joining the squad during the Dubai trip and will also be at our matches during the tournament," said Asfak Thara.