Warner set for comeback in Canada

David Warner's return to cricket looks to have been locked in after he was drafted to play for Winnipeg Hawks in the inaugural Global T20 tournament in Canada.

Warner was given a 12-month suspension from Cricket Australia for his role in the Cape Town ball-tampering scandal, alongside then captain Steve Smith and fellow opening batsman Cameron Bancroft (nine months).

He has been picked in the third round for Winnipeg, with the West Indies' Dwayne Bravo selected in the first and South African left-hander David Miller the second.

The tournament, which is set to begin on June 28 in Toronto, will also mark Smith's return to the game, having been drafted for Toronto Nationals.

Smith was picked in the second round, after West Indian star Darren Sammy became the first-round choice. Fellow Windies allrounder Kieron Pollard was picked third.

Warner will play alongside fellow big-hitting Australian Ben McDermott, who has shone for the Hobart Hurricanes in the KFC Big Bash in the past two seasons. 

Former Australia limited-overs leg-spinner Fawad Ahmed, who is currently without a contract for next summer's domestic action in Australia, was drafted by Vancouver Knights, while Brisbane Heat blaster Chris Lynn was picked up by Edmonton Royals. 

The inaugural month-long competition will begin on June 28 and feature six teams, with the five Canadian sides joined by a Cricket West Indies representative team, consisting entirely of players from the Caribbean.

The league will comprise 22 matches culminating in playoffs and the championship match on July 16. All contests will take place at Maple Leaf Cricket Club, a cricket-specific facility just north of Toronto that will be expanded to a capacity of 7,000 seats.

Warner will also play the start of the Sydney grade cricket season with Randwick Petersham and has signed up for NT's Strike League in Darwin.

He has made himself available to play two one-day games in the Top End tournament on July 21 and 22.

Squad lists

Edmonton Royals: Shahid Afridi, Chris Lynn, Luke Ronchi, Mohammad Irfan, Sohail Tanvir, Christiaan Jonker, Wayne Parnell, Asif Ali, Hasan Khan, Agha Salman, Shaiman Anwar, Ammar Khalid, Satsimranjit Dhindsa, Ahmed Raza, Simon Pervez, Abraash Khan. Coach: Mohammad Akram

Montreal Tigers: Lasith Malinga, Sunil Narine, Thisara Perera, Mohammad Hafeez, Denesh Ramdin, Sandeep Lamichhane, Sikandar Raza, Dasun Shanaka, Isuru Udana, George Worker, Najibullah Zadran, Cecil Pervez, Ibrahim Khaleel, Dillon Heyliger, Nicholas Kirton, Rayyan Pathan. Coach: Tom Moody.

Toronto Nationals: Darren Sammy, Steve Smith, Kieron Pollard, Kamran Akmal, Hussain Talat, Rumman Raees, Nikhil Dutta, Johnson Charles, Kesrick Williams, Naved Ahmed, Nizakat Khan, Farhan Malik, Nitish Kumar, Usama Mir, Rohan Mustafa, Mohammad Umair Ghani. Coach: Phil Simmons.

Vancouver Knights: Chris Gayle, Andre Russell, Evin Lewis, Tim Southee, Chadwick Walton, Fawad Ahmed, Babar Hayat, Sheldon Cottrell, Saad Bin Zafar, Ruvindu Gunasekera, Srimantha Wijeratne, Kamau Leverock, Steven Jacobs, Salman Nazar, Rassie van der Dussen, Jeremy Gordon. Coach: Donovan Miller.

Winnipeg Hawks: Dwayne Bravo, David Miller, David Warner, Lendl Simmons, Darren Bravo, Fidel Edwards, Rayad Emrit, Ben McDermott, Ali Khan, Hamza Tariq, Junaid Siddiqui, Tion Webster, Rizwan Cheema, Hiral Patel, Mark Deyal, Kyle Phillip. Coach: Waqar Younis.

*Cricket West Indies rep team still to be announced