NEW DELHI: Former England skipper Michael Vaughan on Thursday said that the Three Lions’ players should not be allowed to skip the two Tests against New Zealand in order to play the knockouts of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
“Have always said England players should be able to play the IPL. I love what it brings for them .. but they shouldn’t be allowed to stay & play in the finals if picked for the 1st Test v NZ at Lords. Surely TEST cricket against one of the best comes first,” tweeted Vaughan. England cricketers, who play more than one-format, including Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, and Jos Buttler are likely to miss the New Zealand Test series in June, due to a clash with this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL) playoffs, reported ESPNcricinfo.
Stokes, Buttler, and Archer are an integral part of both IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals and England’s Test squad. The schedule of IPL is yet to be announced but the tournament is likely to begin in the second week of April.
Chris Woakes (Delhi Capitals), Jonny Bairstow (Sunrisers Hyderabad), and Sam Curran (Chennai Super Kings) could also be affected if their respective teams qualify for the play-offs.
With the England-New Zealand two-match Test series scheduled for the first two weeks of June, the players might miss the longest format fixtures due to quarantine protocols, if their sides qualify for the playoffs.
