Galaxy of stars for Gayle Pro 15/15

 A galaxy of overseas stars are expected to turn out for this year's second annual staging of the Digicel-sponsored Christopher Gayle Pro 15/15 Cricket Tournament, which will be held at the Kaiser Sports Club in Discovery Bay, St Ann, on October 2.

Among the stars expected to be on show are Pakistan's fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar and former Pakistan great Wasim Akram.

West Indies players, Ramnarash Sarwan, Dwayne Bravo, Sulieman Benn and Pedro Collins are among the regional stars who are expected to be on show.

All for heart foundation

Former West Indies fastbowling greats, Courtney Walsh and Curtley Ambrose, along with one-time wicketkeeper-batsman Ridley Jacobs, are also down to participate.

Proceeds from this year's tournament will be donated to the Heart Foundation of Jamaica.

"Being able to bring some of the finest West Indies cricketers, past and present, to communities in the rural Jamaica for a fun day of cricket is really important to me," said Gayle, during Wednesday's launch which was held at Cuddyz in New Kingston.

"We will be raising funds for the Heart Foundation of Jamaica and this is very close to me and needs all the support it can get in order to continue to provide vital services to Jamaica," said Gayle, who is the West Indies skipper and opening batsman.

Nicola Sutherland, sponsorship executive of Digicel, said her company is happy to be associated with the event and that they are looking forward to a very exciting day of cricket.

"We expect this year to be bigger and better than last year ... . It was very successful last year," said Sutherland.

"Our expectations are very high because we understand that there will be a lot more international players coming in, along with other local players, and so we are hoping that it will be very fantastic for the fans and the sponsors," said Sutherland.

She added that her company will be providing a lot of prizes and surprises for spectators.

"There will be a lot of secret prizes for our fans, but they must show up at this venue to know what they will be getting," said Sutherland.

The event will also showcase some of the best cricketers from St Elizabeth, St Ann, and Kingston. The day's activities will also feature a mixed team of celebrities battling against a local youth team.

-Robert Bailey