England all-rounder Chris Woakes has opened up about his decision to pull out of the second phase of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2021), resuming on September 19 in the UAE.
Notably, Woakes, who plays for Delhi Capitals (DC), alongside his England teammates Jonny Bairstow and Dawid Malan pulled out of the remainder of the IPL 2021 last week due to a hectic schedule to prioritize their well-being.
DC has signed Australian bowler Ben Dwarshuis as a replacement for Woakes.
Explaining his decision to back out of the second leg of the IPL 2021, Woakes said it was extremely hard to play in three back-to-back tournaments – IPL 2021, T20 World Cup 2021, and then Ashes 2021-22 in the era of bio-bubbles and quarantine.
The all-rounder has been already selected in England’s squad for the T20 World Cup 2021 and he hopes to make the cut for the Australia tour for the Ashes series, that’s why he opted out of the second phase of the IPL 14 in the UAE, as he doesn’t want to miss a big winter with England.
As reported by The Guardian, Woakes stated: “My inclusion in the World Cup squad, I didn’t know was going to happen, especially a couple of months ago. The IPL has been rescheduled and thrown on to the end of our summer.”
The pacer continued, “With the World Cup and the Ashes, it would have been too much in a short space of time. I would have loved to have been part of the IPL but something has to give.”
He signed off by saying, “A World Cup and an Ashes tour, it’s almost as big a winter as our summer was in 2019. It’s a shame with what’s going on Covid-wise that it’s not going to be as normal as everyone would like. But, from a cricket perspective, it’s very exciting.”
(With PTI/AP Inputs)
