The second half of the 14th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) will be played in the United Aram Emirates (UAE) due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis in India. The announcement was made by the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) earlier. However, several star players, mainly from England, are unlikely to take part in the second half of the league due to COVID-19-induced restrictions imposed by various boards.
IPL-2021 Phase 2: All England-based players most likely to miss the league
England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) announced on May 29 that it won’t give its players a break to play IPL once the tournament resumes in UAE. Teams such as Rajasthan Royals, Delhi Capitals, Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Rider will be worst hit due to unavailability of the English players in the remaining schedule of IPL.
ECB’s Managing Director Ashley Giles told British media this week that its players will have to travel to Bangladesh for a limited-overs series. Giles added that a few players will be given rest but won’t be allowed to play in the IPL so as to keep them fresh and ready for upcoming T20 World Cup and Ashes.
Players from England who will most likely miss IPL-2021 Phase-2 in UAE:
– Eoin Morgan (Kolkata Knight Riders)
– Moeen Ali (Chennai Super Kings)
– Sam Curran (Chennai Super Kings)
– Chris Woakes (Delhi Capitals)
– Jos Butler (Rajasthan Royals)
Bangladesh also refuses to allow its cricketers to play remainder of IPL
Bangladesh Cricket Board’s president Nazmul Hassan said on Monday that Board will not issue No Objection Certificate (NOC) to its players to appear in the remainder of IPL. This would simply mean that following players are also likely to remain unavailable for phase-2 of IPL-2021:
– Mustafizur Rehman (Rajasthan Royals)
– Shakib Al-Hassan (Kolkata Knight Riders)
Bangladesh has three ODI-series scheduled against Australia, New Zealand and England before, during and after the same time period in which the remainder of IPL is scheduled.
KKR’s Pat Cummins ‘pulled out’, involvement of other Aussies uncertain
Kolkata Knight Riders’ pacer Pat Cummins has pulled out of remainder of the IPL, his KKR colleagues confirmed to media. However, according to reports in Australian media, several other Aussie cricketers are likely to miss the phase-2 of IPL-2021 due to their busy Cricket calendar. The IPL-2021’s remaining schedule is sandwiched between Australia’s tour of West Indies and ICC T20 world cup. The ‘Cricket Australia’ is likely to decide on letting its cricketers to play IPL-2021’s remainder on ‘case-to-case-basis’, according to Australian cricket team’s captain Aaron Finch.
For as many as 13 Australian players – including Steve Smith (Delhi Capitals), David Warner (Sun Risers Hyderabad) – it remains uncertain that whether they will play the remainder of IPL-2021 in UAE or not.
