JOHANNESBURG - Cricket South Africa confirmed the appointment of experienced sports management professional, Russell Adams, as tournament director for the T20 Global League on Monday.
The Cape Town-born Adams, is well known to the global cricket fraternity, bringing years of international cricketing and sports management experience to the new tournament which kicks off in November.
Adams has been based in India for the last nine years where he has served as the vice-president of commercial, operations and the cricket academy for the Royal Challengers Bangalore. Before this role, he worked as a consultant for the Kolkata Knight Riders. He has gained valuable event management experience working on all 10 IPL tournaments, as well as the now defunct Champions League T20.
Adams is no stranger to the local cricket industry and has racked up impressive experience through stints with various South African sports teams. He has served as cricket manager at the Western Province Cricket Association (WPCA), team and operations manager of the Cape Cobras, and was appointed the Project Manager at Newlands Cricket Ground for the inaugural ICC World T20 in 2007.
He also worked as logistics manager during the 2003 Cricket World Cup. Prior to that Adams spent over 20 years as a club cricketer, coach, secretary and manager at WPCA.
Adams who starts his new role in August, is looking forward to returning to South Africa.
“I’m looking forward to this new chapter in my career and to be given the opportunity to be part of the exciting T20 Global League,” said Adams.
“Although I’ve been working abroad for close to a decade now, I’ve always wanted to come back to South Africa and contribute positively to the sports and cricket environment in our wonderful country.
“The T20 Global League is a unique opportunity for me to do just that and use my experience to further enhance and build a world-class T20 competition."
CSA chief executive, Haroon Lorgat said: “I want to congratulate Russell on his appointment. His experience over the last 10 years with the IPL and his qualifications and passion for the game makes him an ideal person for the job."
With preparations for the tournament firmly under way, the next key event is the player draft which is scheduled for August 19.