Finn Allen of New Zealand, Heinrich Klaasen of South Africa, and David Miller of South Africa have all been confirmed as pre-auction signings for the DP World International League T20 Season 5. All three will play in their first tournaments. Allen will join the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders, while Miller and Klaasen will play for the Gulf Giants. Marcus Stoinis, an Australian all-rounder who has been out of the game for three years, has joined with the Dubai Capitals.
By the deadline of August 3, all six DP World ILT20 franchises had filed their overseas pre-auction signings; each franchise was allowed to have up to four such signings. On October 1, 2026, the Season 5 Player Auction will take place in Dubai. Teams will then add players from the UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and other countries to create squads of 18–23 players. Player registrations for the auction are accepted at https://registration.ilt20.ae/, and they close on September 12. After the auction is over, each franchise may additionally add one wildcard signing.
What benefits do the four major acquisitions offer their teams?
Many people consider Allen to be one of the T20 format’s most potent openers. The 27-year-old has amassed 1663 runs, including three hundreds, at a strike rate of 170.73 in 62 Twenty20 International matches. His 33-ball century against South Africa in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final showed that he could change the course of a game in a few of overs.
One of the most seasoned middle-order hitters in T20 cricket, Miller joins the Gulf Giants.
He is one of the most reliable finishers in the format, having scored 2804 runs at an average of 33.78 and a strike-rate of 141.40 in 140 T20I matches for South Africa.
After joining him at Gulf Giants, Klaasen has scored 1000 T20I runs for South Africa in 58 games. The wicketkeeper-batter is highly regarded for his ability to control spin bowling and has amassed about 7000 runs from roughly 300 T20 games across all leagues.
For more than ten years, Stoinis has been a reliable member of Australia’s white-ball teams. He has amassed 1416 runs at an average of 30.78 and a strike rate of 146.28 in 87 Twenty20 Internationals, while his right-arm medium pace has taken 53 wickets at 25.22. He was a member of Australia’s winning team for the 2021 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.
Which additional players from each of the six teams have been confirmed?
The USA batsman Matthew Tromp, who has amassed 385 runs in 18 Twenty20 matches at an average of 29.61 and a strike-rate of 150.39, and Jason Holder, who played for the team as a wildcard in Season 4, have also joined the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders. From Season 4, Sunil Narine is back at ADKR.
Dan Lawrence and Andries Gous are still with the reigning champion Desert Vipers. Afghanistan’s Mujeeb-ur-Rahman joins the Vipers after playing for the Gulf Giants and Dubai Capitals, and Shimron Hetmyer, a wildcard signing for the Vipers in Season 4, returns as a pre-auction acquisition.
Along with the returning Rovman Powell and Mustafizur Rahman, the Dubai Capitals have recruited Noor Ahmad, who made seven appearances for Sharjah Warriorz and eight for Desert Vipers.
Sherfane Rutherford, who played nine games for the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders and thirty for the Desert Vipers, has joined MI Emirates. Nicholas Pooran, Rashid Khan, and Romario Shepherd are also returning to the team.
The Sharjah Warriorz have added Waqar Salamkheil, who made 21 appearances for MI Emirates and 11 for Dubai Capitals, James Vince, who had 42 prior appearances for Gulf Giants, and Adam Milne, who played 12 games for the Warriorz in Season 3. Additionally, Sikandar Raza rejoins the Warriorz.
The Gulf Giants also bring back quick bowler Blessing Muzarabani and all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai from their Season 4 roster.
