Former Rajasthan Royals Chief Executive Officer Sean Morris has been appointed as the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of upcoming Masters Champions League by the tournament governing council.
"The Masters Champions League (MCL) governing council today announced the appointment of former Hampshire cricketer Sean Morris as its Chief Operating Officer (COO). In his position as the COO, Morris will be responsible for being the interface with the varied sections of internal and external stakeholders, who form an integral part of the tournament," a press release stated.
Morris played for 37 first-class matches in his six seasons at Hampshire in the English county circuit between 1992 and 1996.
"In January 2008, he was appointed as CEO, Professional Cricketers Association (PCA). Later in 2009, Morris joined the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Rajasthan Royals as its CEO, and has worked commercially with multiple cricket stakeholders as well as other IPL franchises including Kings XI Punjab," the release further stated.
Morris' appointment follows the successful completion of the player registration process for the inaugural auction scheduled to be held in October 2015.
Around 260 players have registered to be part of the auction process. Earlier, legends including Adam Gilchrist, Jacques Kallis and Brian Lara were unveiled as the icon players of the tournament at the launch of the event staged at the Burj Al Arab in June this year.
Zarah Shah, CEO, MCL said:"Sean Morris is a fantastic addition with an outstanding track record. He is experienced in the ways of the international game, has played the game professionally and operated at the highest levels of cricket administration, all skills which will help us build the MCL brand. He is a very familiar figure and it will provide a lot of comfort to the franchises, to players and all the other stakeholders."
On his new role, Morris said:"I am delighted with this opportunity. It has been a privilege to have been associated with this great game in various roles previously. Now comes another exciting phase in my professional career. I keenly look forward to working with the players, the governing council, our commercial partners and the fans to take this great concept forward."
The next stage of the process for the player auctions and other operational details will be announced in due course.
