Dutch international cricket player Bas de Leede (22) has signed for the Indian IPL franchise Mumbai Indians in what the Dutch cricket board says is ‘one of the most sensational transfers in Dutch cricket history’.

De Leede will not play directly in the Indian Premier League (IPL) which is regarded by many as the pinnacle of international cricket, but will participate in the ILT20 tournament to be held in the United Arab Emirates in January and February next year.

The ILT20 is a new Twenty20 tournament in which six teams will participate, four of which have an Indian owner. The teams must include two cricketers from Associate countries in their squad, offering opportunities for players from countries such as the Netherlands, Scotland, the United States and Nepal.

‘This is what you dream of as a cricketer: to be in one of the stadiums in the Emirates with some of the world’s best players,’ De Leede said.  ‘My teammates include West Indians Kieron Pollard, Dwayne Bravo and Nicholas Pooran and a fourth is the Afghan legspinner Rashid Khan, also an international star.’

‘This is a reward for all the hard work Bas has put in over the years which has culminated in an extremely successful summer against some of the biggest teams in the world,’ said Roland Lefebvre of the Dutch cricket association KNCB.

Mumbai Indians is the IPL’s most successful franchise. The IPL’s media rights were recently sold to STAR India for five years for $6.2 billion.