South Africa's David Miller and Heinrich Klaasen, along with New Zealand's Finn Allen, have been confirmed as pre-auction signings for DP World International League T20 Season 5, with all three set to make their maiden appearances in the tournament. Miller and Klaasen will represent Gulf Giants, while Allen joins Abu Dhabi Knight Riders. Australian all-rounder Marcus Stoinis has been signed by Dubai Capitals, returning to the league after a three-year absence.
All six DP World ILT20 franchises submitted
their foreign pre-auction signings by the August 3 deadline, with each franchise permitted a maximum of four such signings. The Season 5 Player Auction will take place in Dubai on October 1, 2026, at which point teams will add UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and further foreign players to build squads of between 18 and 23 players. Player registrations for the auction close on September 12, with submissions accepted at https://registration.ilt20.ae/. Each franchise may also add one wildcard signing after the auction concludes.
What do the four headline signings bring to their franchises?
Allen is widely regarded as one of the most destructive openers in the T20 format. Across 62 T20I appearances, the 27-year-old has accumulated 1663 runs, including three centuries, at a strike-rate of 170.73. His 33-ball century in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final against South Africa demonstrated his capacity to reshape a match within a handful of overs.
Miller arrives at Gulf Giants as one of the most experienced middle-order batters in T20 cricket. His 140-match T20I career for South Africa has yielded 2804 runs at an average of 33.78 and a strike-rate of 141.40, making him one of the most dependable finishers in the format.
Klaasen, who joins him at Gulf Giants, has reached 1000 T20I runs for South Africa across 58 matches. The wicketkeeper-batter has accumulated close to 7000 runs from nearly 300 T20 appearances across all competitions and is particularly valued for his ability to dominate spin bowling.
Stoinis has been a consistent presence in Australia's white-ball squads for over a decade. In 87 T20Is, he has scored 1416 runs at an average of 30.78 and a strike-rate of 146.28, while his right-arm medium pace has brought him 53 wickets at 25.22. He was part of Australia's ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 winning squad.
Which other players have been confirmed across the six franchises?
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders have also signed Jason Holder, who featured for the franchise as a wildcard in Season 4, and USA batter Matthew Tromp, who has scored 385 runs in 18 T20s at an average of 29.61 and a strike-rate of 150.39. Sunil Narine returns to ADKR from Season 4.
Desert Vipers, the defending champions, have retained Andries Gous and Dan Lawrence. Shimron Hetmyer, a wildcard signing for the Vipers in Season 4, returns as a pre-auction signing, and Afghanistan's Mujeeb-ur-Rahman joins the Vipers having previously appeared for Gulf Giants and Dubai Capitals.
Dubai Capitals have added Noor Ahmad, who had seven previous appearances for Sharjah Warriorz and eight for Desert Vipers, alongside the returning Rovman Powell and Mustafizur Rahman.
MI Emirates have signed Sherfane Rutherford, who made nine appearances for Abu Dhabi Knight Riders and 30 for Desert Vipers, with Nicholas Pooran, Rashid Khan and Romario Shepherd all returning to the franchise.
Also Read: Sharjah Warriorz appoint Adrian Birrell as head coach for ILT20 Season 5
Sharjah Warriorz have brought in Adam Milne, who played 12 matches for the Warriorz in Season 3, James Vince, who had 42 previous appearances for Gulf Giants, and Waqar Salamkheil, who featured 21 times for MI Emirates and 11 times for Dubai Capitals. Sikandar Raza also returns to the Warriorz.
Gulf Giants additionally welcome back all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai and fast bowler Blessing Muzarabani from their Season 4 squad.
