‘Really excited about the associate players’ – Steve Waugh expresses excitement ahead of ETPL 2026

Amsterdam Flames’ owner Steve Waugh said that building a culture would be important for his team during the inaugural edition of the European T20 Premier League (ETPL) 2026.

The Flames are one of the six teams set to compete in ETPL, which is a newly established, ICC-sanctioned franchise T20 cricket tournament, jointly organised by Cricket Scotland, Cricket Ireland, and the Royal Dutch Cricket Association.

During a media event after the first-ever ETPL player draft, CricTracker asked Steve Waugh about how he plans to inject the ruthless winning mentality that he fostered in the Australian national team into a franchise squad assembled via a draft in just a matter of weeks.

The former Australian captain admitted that it will be a challenge and revealed that he was keen on signing players who were also good human beings. He also expressed his excitement about the associate players in his side and explained how he would try to make everyone in the team feel equally important.

“Yes, I guess that is going to be a challenge. We have sort of assembled a squad of not only good players but good people and that was really important in who we were selecting. A lot of these players have already got a connection. Obviously, some of the players won’t know too many players,” Waugh said.

But I am really excited not only about the European players but also the associate players. You know, we have got a player from Nepal, one from Canada, and one from Italy. So getting those guys involved in the team. Making sure they are important members and having a say. We will be doing some activities as a team or a squad before the first game is played. So, getting the guys together, getting to know each other,” he added.

I think the leader is really important: Steve Waugh on signing Mitchell Marsh

Mitchell Marsh, Australia’s T20 captain, was roped in by the Flames ahead of the first season of the ETPL. Waugh said that having a good leader is imperative for a team and backed Marsh to bring the players together and create a culture.

“I think the leader is really important. That is why we have selected Mitchell Marsh as a captain. I think he is really great at bringing people together, creating a culture, that is one of his strengths. That is why he was the first person we thought of when we were putting our squad together. It is definitely something we want to build up on,” Waugh stated.

“Culture is important, getting along, having fun, enjoying themselves and what a great opportunity for these players to sort of improve their cricket and be fast-tracked by playing alongside the best players in the world. I think this is really a blueprint for their success going forward, so it’s an exciting time for everyone,” he concluded.