Strauss bats away IPL concerns

Julian Guyer

England captain Andrew Strauss believes his side's stars will be able to appear in the lucrative Indian Premier League and still play for the Test side without jeopardising the national team's results.

England are set to head to the West Indies on Wednesday for a four-Test tour under new skipper Strauss with the players central contracts still unsigned.

Talks were ongoing on Tuesday between the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and England's Professional Cricketers' Association (PCA) regarding the possiblities for the likes of stars such as Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff to play in the IPL, a cash-rich Twenty20 tournament.

deadline

But the deadline for players making themselves available for the IPL is February 4 - the same day as the first day of the opening Test in Jamaica.

The IPL debate was an issue before the personality clash which saw Pietersen forced to resign the England captaincy and Peter Moores sacked as head coach earlier this month and it threatens to again destabilise a team now doing its best to rally round Strauss.

"There's a huge will on behalf of the players, the PCA and the ECCB to get it done and dusted as soon as possible," Strauss told reporters at England's Gatwick Airport Hotel here Tuesday.

"Everyone will work as hard as they can to ensure it's done before the cricket starts," the opening batsman added.

"From the players' point of view, there are huge opportunities there financially. We need to find a way of marrying the opportunities available to the players and making sure the players are able to commit themselves to playing for England."

During last season's inaugural IPL campaign, England players were effectively barred from the tournament because of a fixture clash with their home international programme.

IPL chief Lalit Modi has said players must be prepared to commit for at least a four-week stint.

no problems

England would have no problems with players going for two weeks from April 10-24 in a competition which features franchise teams, whose wealthy owners will bid for some of the world's best players at an 'auction'.

But one compromise being mooted is a three-week IPL spell for the likes of England stars such as Pietersen and all-rounder Andrew Flintoff.

That would allow them to return to England in time for the first Test against the West Indies at Lord's on May 6.

However, they would then be ruled out of the preceding round of English county championship fixtures, a move that would anger their domestic sides and raise questions about whether their readiness to play Test cricket.

Strauss, unlikely to be an IPL target even before becoming England captain as he has not played one-day international cricket since the 2007 World Cup, said: "Players have to be fully prepared for a Test match.

"What that preparation is depends on the player to a certain extent.

"I believe the players who will be involved in the IPL are experienced campaigners. They didn't just turn up yesterday. They know what Test cricket is about and know what preparation they need."

IPL commitments

England are only playing the West Indies at home in the run-up to the Ashes after Sri Lanka pulled out when it became clear they couldn't field their best team because of players' IPL commitments.

But there are concerns the West Indies could be similarly weakened, leading to accusations that Test cricket - which administrators continue to insist is the pinnacle of the world game - was being devalued.

LONDON, Wednesday AFP