COLOMBO: In a first for cricket, a mixed-gender cricket tournament built on the 80-over format will be played at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) here from November 14 to 29.

Test Twenty will feature 160 young cricketers, aged 13 to 21, who will be drafted from around the world into four continental teams. The girls' and boys' squads will play for the same team, and their runs will combine into one result.

Each of the four continental teams will have a squad of 40 players, with 20 girls and 20 boys. Each match will be played in a single day, using both the red ball and the white ball.

Each team will bat twice. The first 40 overs will be played in whites, with the red ball, during daylight. The final 40 overs will be played in colour, with the white ball, under the SSC floodlights.

Scores will carry forward from the first half to the second.

"Under the Parity Rule, the girls' scores will decide the boys' wins under lights. What he scores under lights decides whether she wins. The next day, the toss may turn it around," stated a press release for the event's organisers.

Gaurav Bahirvani, founder of Test Twenty and author of Parity Rule, said that parity will extend beyond the rules of the game to the broadcast itself, giving both the girls and boys equal time.

The advisory board of the tournament comprises greats of the game such as AB de Villiers, Matthew Hayden, and Sir Clive Lloyd.

The Global Selection Committee will be chaired by renowned Delhi coach Rajkumar Sharma, and the tournament's operations will be led by Mike Fordham.