Ahead of phase 2 of the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the UAE, the eight franchises have found themselves in a bit of trouble. The BCCI has come up with a deadline of August 20 for the eight teams to come up submit their final squads. A few of the franchises are waiting for the green signal from Australia and England players regarding their participation in the cash-rich T20 league in September-October.
Earlier, CA and ECB said that it’s up to their players whether they want to take part in the IPL or not. According to some of the reports, the franchises are still having discussions with some of the cricketers. However, nothing concrete has come to the fore as of yet. With a month left for the start of the second leg, the franchises are in a fix regarding players taking part.
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As per the reports in Insidesport, one of the franchise owners said, “We have to submit the squad by August 20 but I can’t confirm whether all foreign players will be available. We are still in talks with some players. The good thing is that the T20 World Cup will be held in UAE and that gives us confidence that all players will be available but we are still waiting on some players’ final confirmation.”
Chennai Super Kings are the only team, who has their full squad in place. Rajasthan Royals are still waiting for the participation of the players like Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes in the IPL 2021 is still under the clouds. England has a hectic international schedule in place this year. After the T20 World Cup, they will be touring Australia for the Ashes followed by a tour of the West Indies.
Describing the same, another franchise official said, “Yes, BCCI’s delay in responding officially did play a part in last-minute hassle. We kept hearing about players’ availability in the news but BCCI only confirmed that officially in August. That’s why the August 20 deadline is a little early for us. But if that’s the norm, we will adhere to that.”
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The second leg of IPL 2021 will start on Sunday, September 19 with the final scheduled to be taking place on Friday, October 15. Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah will host the remaining 31 matches in the tournament.
