The Los Angeles Knight Riders (LAKR) have signed star players Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Lockie Ferguson and Jason Roy from the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for the inaugural season of the MLC.

Kolkata Knight Riders stars Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Lockie Ferguson and Jason Roy have signed up with the Los Angeles Knight Riders (LAKR) for the inaugural season of the MLC. Adam Zampa, Martin Guptill and Rilee Rossouw are the other high-profile international players signed by LAKR.

The LAKR squad also includes Unmukt Chand, the American Jaskaran Malhotra and Ali Khan. Malhotra is one of four men to have scored six sixes in an over in international cricket and the trio were – among others – selected by the franchise in a draft in March.

Jason Roy, who recently terminated his ECB promotion deal to pursue cricket in the MLC, was also a stand-in for KKR in the 2023 IPL.

New Zealand pacer Lockie Ferguson, who returned to KKR ahead of IPL 2023, has also joined the team.

Meanwhile, Andre Russell and Sunil Narine have a long relationship with the Knight Riders brand. In addition to KKR and LAKR, they also represent Trinbago Knight Riders in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) and Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in the Abu Dhabi T10 League (ILT20).

"We have assembled a strong and talented team for MLC's debut season, capable of competing at the highest level and bringing joy to cricket fans around the world," said Venky Mysore, CEO of Knight Riders, in a statement.

LAKR squad

 Ali Khan, Bhaskar Yadram, Corne Dry, Nitish Kumar, Saif Badar, and Shadley Van Schalkwyk, Jaskaran Malhotra, Ali Sheikh, Unmukt Chand, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Lockie Ferguson, Adam Zampa, Martin Guptill, and Rilee Rossouw.

MLC 2023, a six-team event, is scheduled to be held July 13-30 at Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas, Texas.