Quit International Cricket: IPL franchises sound out 6 English players with multi-million-pound deal
IPL 2023 is continuing in the entire flow. However, a renowned English media has reported that six English players have been asked to quit international cricket and have been allegedly offered a multi-million-pound deal.
FollowOwners of top Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises are trying to convince as many as six premier England players to quit international cricket and take up handsome annual contracts ranging up to £5 million to play Twenty20 (T20) leagues round the year, the 'Times London' reported. Almost all the 10 IPL franchises have branched out in various competitions, including CPL (West Indies), SA T20 (South Africa), Global T20 League (UAE) and the upcoming Major League T20 in the United States of America (USA).
The report, however, needs to state which franchises have approached and the players involved in the discussion. There will also be an ambitious Saudi T20 league in which some IPL franchises might invest. 'The Times' report quotes: "Initial discussions have taken place after at least six English players, including some international stars, were approached by IPL franchise owners and asked whether, in principle, they would accept a deal that would make an Indian team their main employer, rather than the ECB or an English county."
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"This development follows discussions among players' unions worldwide about the potential implications of 12-month franchise contracts, which would be a significant step towards the football model of elite players being primarily contracted to their team and released for international duty, rather than the other way around. "One source told The Times that contract offers could come as soon as the end of the year," it added.
There is no doubt that T20 cricket is here to stay, and T10 is also fast catching the public's imagination. While International Cricket Council (ICC) has always thought about putting a cap on the number of leagues that an active contracted player can take part in a year, one can't rule out a possibility of a lot of young players either retiring from international cricket or giving up on central contracts to become free agents. The only hurdle in such a scenario could be 'NOC' from the respective country's cricket board.
"The probability of such a model being adopted has grown increasingly likely in recent years as some IPL franchise owners have bought stakes in several T20 tournaments in the UAE, South Africa, Caribbean and now the United States with the new Major League Cricket venture which begins in July," the newspaper was quoted as saying.
The paper also claimed that a discussion on similar lines occurred with star Australian T20 specialists. "Discussions have occurred with some high-profile Australian players about full-time deals, but this has now been extended to English players. Contracts could be worth upwards of £2 million a year and even as high as £5 million, more than five times the value of the highest England central contracts."
The paper also discussed the possibility of having partial contracts with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) or county and the IPL franchise, especially the ones who play white-ball cricket. "Reduced IPL deals covering at least three rounds would also be offered. It is unlikely that any of England's Test stars will walk away from their central contracts in favour of a franchise contract, but the sheer amount of money on offer makes that a risk in the future. Players will likely arrange "bespoke" deals depending on their circumstances, which could result in them being part-contracted to their county or the ECB and part-contracted to a franchise," the report further worded.
