SRH’s Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller of DC and KKR’s Finn Allen will be seen in action for Abu Dhabi Knight Riders and Gulf Giants.
Published: August 11, 2026, 5:13 PM IST
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Heinrich Klaasen (from left), David Miller and Finn Allen(Photo: IANS)
Indian Premier League superstars Finn Allen from Kolkata Knight Riders, David Miller from Delhi Capitals and Heinrich Klaasen from Sunrisers Hyderabad are set to make their debut in Dubai International League T20 2026 this yearThe three cricketers are pre-auction signings for Abu Dhabi Knight Riders and Gulf Giants for the tournament’s fifth season.
Allen (ADKR), Miller and Klaasen (both Gulf Giants) will be making their maiden ILT20 2026 appearances while big-hitting Australian all-rounder Marcus Stoinis (Dubai Capitals) makes a return to the tournament after a three-year gapILT20 2026 icons Jason Holder, Sunil Narine (Abu Dhabi Knight Riders), Shimron Hetmyer (Desert Vipers), Rovman Powell and Mustafizur Rahman (Dubai Capitals), Nicholas Pooran, Rashid Khan, Romario Shepherd (MI Emirates) and Sikandar Raza (Sharjah Warriorz) return to their Season 4 franchisesVipers – defending champions – have also retained Andries Gous and Dan Lawrence while all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai and fast bowler Blessing Muzarabani return to the Giants camp.
The six DP World ILT20 franchises completed the Pre-Auction Signing process for foreign players on Monday, 3 August – the submission deadlineEach team was permitted a total of four Pre-Auction SigningsThe teams will complete their selection process by adding UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and additional foreign players – minimum of 18 and a maximum of 23 players per squad – at the DP World ILT20 Season 5 Player Auction which will be held in Dubai on Thursday, 1 October 2026The last date of submission is Saturday, 12 SeptemberFollowing the auction, each team will be permitted to add one further Wildcard signing.
ILT20 Pre-Auction signing.
New Zealand’s Finn Allen, who was signed up for Rs 2 crore by Shah Rukh Khan’s KKR ahead of IPL 2026, is widely regarded as one of the most fearsome openers in the T20 circuitThe right-hander blazed away to a sensational 33-ball century in the T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final against South AfricaIn 62 T20I appearances, the 27-year-old has scored 1663 runs (three 100s) at a phenomenal 170.73 strike-rate.
David Miller, who was signed up by Delhi Capitals for Rs 2 crore ahea of IPL 2026, is one of the most seasoned and accomplished middle-order batters in the formatThe left-hander has tallied 2804 T20I runs at 33.78 (141.40 strike-rate) in his distinguished 140-match T20I career for South Africa.
Heinrich Klaasen, who was retained for Rs 23 crore by Kavya Maran’s Sunrisers Hyderabad, scored 1000 runs for South Africa in 58 T20I matchesThe wicketkeeper-batter is considered one of the best hitters in the T20 format, especially against spin bowlingHe remains one of the most sought after T20 players on the circuit with nearly 300 T20 appearances and close to 7000 runs in the format.
ILT20 Season 5 Pre-Auction Signings also include
USA’s Matthew Tromp – ADKR (18 T20s, 385 runs, 29.61 average, 150.39 strike-rate), Afghanistan’s Mujeeb-ur-Rahman – Desert Vipers (five previous appearances each for Gulf Giants and Dubai Capitals), Noor Ahmad – Dubai Capitals (seven previous appearances for Sharjah Warriorz and eight for Desert Vipers), West Indian Sherfane Rutherford – MI Emirates (nine previous appearances for Abu Dhabi Knight Riders and 30 for Desert Vipers), Adam Milne – Sharjah Warriorz (12 appearances for the Warriorz in Season 3), James Vince – Sharjah Warriorz (42 previous appearances for Gulf Giants) and Waqar Salamkheil – Sharjah Warriorz (21 previous appearances for MI Emirates and 11 for Dubai Capitals).
