espnstar.com’s Chandraboli Mitra caught up with the Diamonds Eagles batsman Adrian McLaren for an exclusive chat.

It is going to be a league of its kind - the Airtel Champions League, where the top 12 domestic teams of the leading cricketing nations will lock horns against each other over a period of 15 days.

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Whether this concept is going to be successful, only time will tell but that does not seem to be of a reason of any worry for the most of the budding cricketers of these domestic T20 sides. They are simply desperate to showcase their talent on the world stage and make a mark for themselves.

One such cricketer is Adrian McLaren, who plays for the Diamonds Eagles - one of top two South African teams. When he spoke to espnstar.com, it was very much evident from the glitter of his eyes that he wants to get out there and perform.

"I am too excited to face domestic teams from other countries. It would be a great experience playing in a tournament of international stature against some international cricketers. And if I can perform decently and get a few eyeballs rolling then I would consider myself lucky," said McLaren.

However, hardly being out of South Africa, this right-handed batsman is fully aware of the sub-continental challenges awaiting him.

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"The competition is going to be really challenging as the conditions in the sub-continent is one of the toughest. I am keen to get used to the conditions as early as possible.

"I want to make the maximum during the warm-up games, so that I can adapt quickly. It would be a great opportunity for players like me to do well in this tournament and get noticed," said the 29-year-old cricketer, who idolises Allan Donald and Jhonty Rhodes.

Agreeing that doing well in the Airtel Champions League would also open doors for him in the Indian Premier League (IPL), he said, "To be honest, of course I am hoping that if I can perform well here, I can fancy my chances in the IPL as well."

While, McLaren is anxious about what awaits him in the next fortnight but that has not suppressed his excitement about playing in the cricket loving country - India.

"The most exciting part will be to play in front of the Indian crowd. We have all heard about the Indian spectators and this is something I am eagerly looking forward to."

When asked about how his team is preparing to deal with the other high-profile teams studded with big names and stars in the tournament, McLaren, who was the second highest runs scorer in the SAA Provincial Challenge for 2006-07 with 807 runs at 62.07, including 4 hundreds, simply said, "We will be taking it one match at a time. We will concentrate on the first two games initially and then try and get into the next round and then plan ahead."

Underplaying personal goals, McLaren signed off, saying, "I haven't set any goals for myself. All I want to do is to play well in these sub-continental conditions. Basically, I want to learn as much as I can from this tour. That is the only objective for me in this Airtel Champions League tourney."

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