Cricket South Africa nullifies PCB’s sacrifice by preferring IPL

Some PSL franchise owners are livid with the development

PHOTO COURTESY: PCB

Cricket South Africa (CSA) has nullified the support granted by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) by allowing their major Twenty20 (T20) players to feature in the Indian Premier League (IPL) while rejecting the idea of postponing their bilateral series to accommodate the Pakistan Super League (PSL) season six.

Some franchise owners are livid with the development. They believe that the PCB should have prioritised their own league as opposed to an away tour.

It should be noted that the PSL season six was postponed after multiple cases of coronavirus emerged during the competition. Only 14 matches were played before the decision to postpone the event was taken. The 20 remaining fixtures are expected to be played in the month of June.

The franchise owners had recommended completing the tournament at the end of March and the beginning of April, however, the PCB had rejected the proposal citing severe financial losses for CSA. The franchise owners had sought permission to approach CSA directly which was also shot down.

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The CSA has now allowed its players to participate in the IPL, bowing down to Indian pressure. Many star players will not feature in the T20 bilateral series against Pakistan. A potential B-team is expected to face the Men in Green during the T20 leg of the tour.

A high-ranking franchise official, while speaking to Daily Express, expressed his disappointment in the development while also being pessimistic about the resumption of the PSL season six

“PCB thought about South Africa’s finances but they do not care about the financial issues being faced by us. They shot down our proposal to postpone the tour and now the Proteas are sending their players to the IPL and looking after their own interests,” the official said.

“There is a mountain of issues with the PSL. We do not see any plans for the resumption of the tournament. We do not think that the major players around the world will be able to come for the PSL in June,” the official added.

It should be noted that important players in the South African line-up feature in the IPL. These include players such as Kagiso Rabada (Dehli Capitals), Quinton de Kock (Mumbai Indians), Lungi Ngidi (Chennai Super Kings), David Miller (Rajasthan Royals) and Anrich Nortje (Dehli Capitals). These players will not feature in the upcoming T20 series between Pakistan and South Africa. A contract with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has been cited as a reason for their non-inclusion.

The selectors have also dropped veteran batsman Far du Plessis from the line-up. Questions are also being raised in South Africa about giving preference to the IPL over national duties. Veteran pacer Dale Steyn was one of the voices that spoke against the development.