Top Australian cricketers including limited-overs skipper Aaron Finch, Steve Smith and IPL’s costliest overseas cricketer Pat Cummins are set to miss the start of IPL 2020 in UAE after Cricket Australia and England and Wales Cricket Board agreed to a limited overs series in England just ahead of the T20 league.
England’s Eoin Morgan, Jofra Archer, Ben Stokes too won’t be allowed to play in the IPL before September 26. The 13th edition of IPL is set to begin from September 19.
England and Australia will be playing three T20 Internationals at the Ageas Bowl on September 4, 6 and 8 while the ODIs will be held on September 11, 13 and 16 at the Old Trafford.
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The latest that the players can touch base in UAE is September 17 or 18 and as per the IPL SOP, will be quarantined for six days with RT-PCR tests on day 1, 3 and 6. On the seventh day, they will be entering the bio-bubble provided they test negative on all three occasions. Effectively, none of the players will be available for at least the first two to three games of their respective franchises.
All eight franchises had apparently requested the BCCI to ease the quarantine norms but the board has unofficially rejected the request.
A total of 29 players from England and Australia are part of the eight IPL squads. All the franchises apart from Mumbai Indians are expected to be affected because of this. The two Australian players – Chris Lynn and Nathan Coulter-Nile – in Mumbai Indians’ squad are not part of Australia’s limited overs squad for the England tour.
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Rajasthan Royals are likely to suffer the most in their absence as they have Buttler, Smith and Archer in their ranks. As per the joint release issued by ECB and CA, the upcoming series will also be a bio-secure behind the closed doors event with the Australian team reaching UK on August 24. The Australian squad will travel to Derbyshire’s The Incora County Ground before leaving for the Ageas Bowl after England’s third Test match against Pakistan on August 27.
Australia will be playing 50-over intra-squad practice games and three T20 warm-up matches before the series.
The three ODIs will form part of the ICC World Cup Super League.
Sunrisers Hyderabad will have to be without their captain David Warner for the first week of IPL. New Zealand’s Kane Williamson, who had led SRH last year, is expected to step in as skipper again.
(With agency inputs)