Middlesex to sign Tendulkar to play Twenty20 cricket - India News and Travel Times Provides India-centric and other News and Features

England county team Middlesex is all set to sign master blaster Sachin Tendulkar to play Twenty20 cricket for them next season. Former Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist will also play Twenty20 cricket for Middlesex next season. The deals would be part-funded by the MCC and would commit the players to five Twenty20 matches, all at Lord's, The Guardian reports. "We expect to make an announcement shortly. The two clubs (MCC and Middlesex) are working closely together," MCC's chief executive Keith Bradshaw said. Tendulkar last played domestic cricket in England for Yorkshire as a 19-year-old in 1992. Wicketkeeper-batsman Gilchrist has never appeared in county cricket. He retired from international cricket in 2007, but continues to play with the Deccan Chargers in the IPL. Gilchrist, a member of the MCC's world cricket committee, may extend his affiliation with the MCC beyond the end of the Twenty20 Cup, and he is expected to play for Middlesex against the Australians before their one-day series against England. The signing of two such internationally renowned players would be extremely lucrative for the MCC, who are currently exploring ways to finance a 400 million pound redevelopment plan, The Guardian reports.