In a huge blow to the Pakistan Super League (PSL), England players have been reportedly banned by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) during their domestic season. Just recently, the ECB confirmed to the BCCI the full availability of its players for the next three editions of the cash-rich Indian Premier League (IPL).
However, a Telegraph report has stated that English players will not be allowed to take part in the PSL and other franchise leagues in the world apart from the IPL, as they clash with the domestic summer.
The adjustment is projected to reduce the earning potential of some English players during the home series, but the board feels that the new strategy would improve the quality of the local game.
“The ECB will also stop allowing players to appear in any competitions that overlap with the Vitality Blast and the Hundred. The board confirmed that players will be barred from leagues suspected of corruption and prevented from “double-dipping"—switching to a new tournament once eliminated from another competition taking place at the same time," the Telegraph report read.
Under the new policy, English players who no longer play first-class cricket will also not be allowed to miss English domestic white-ball games.
“We need to protect the integrity of our sport and the strength of our competitions in England and Wales as well. This policy gives clarity to players and professional counties around our approach to issuing No Objection Certificates.
It will enable us to strike the right balance between supporting players who want to take up opportunities to earn and gain experience while also protecting the integrity of cricket globally, ensuring we don’t undermine our own ECB competitions, and managing the welfare of centrally contracted England players,” ECB chief executive Richard Gould was quoted as saying by The Telegraph.
With Pakistan hosting the ICC Champions Trophy in February and March next year, the PCB had to move PSL 2025 from mid-March to mid-April. This means that PSL 2025 will directly clash with the IPL 2025 which begins on March 14.
The majority of the top English players like Jos Buttler, Phil Salt, Will Jacks, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, and Reece Topley, among others, will play in the IPL after being picked by various franchises in the mega auction that was recently held in Jeddah on November 24 and 25.
