England set to feature in IPL as Bangladesh tour to be postponed

England’s players are set to be freed to play in the second half of this year’s Indian Premier League in September with the tour of Bangladesh, which was scheduled at the same time, to be postponed, reports telegraph.

England had been due to tour Bangladesh for three one-day internationals and three Twenty20 internationals, which would have clashed with the IPL and entailed leaving England a matter of days after the end of the Test series with India on September 14. 

But the postponement of the tour of Bangladesh – which is now planned to take place within the next 18 months – would leave England players with the option to rest ahead of a gruelling winter, which includes the Twenty20 World Cup and the Ashes, or participate in the IPL.

This year’s IPL was postponed in April due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The last half of the competition is now due to be played from September 19 to October 15 in the United Arab Emirates.

England had made it clear that their IPL contingent, which includes stars Jofra Archer, Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes and white-ball skipper Eoin Morgan, would be expected to play for the international side if England games clashed with the IPL. But with the IPL considered ideal preparation for the T20 World Cup – which will also be played in the UAE, simplifying travel and quarantine requirements – and players earning considerable sums from participating in the competition, England players will now be allowed to choose whether they want to play in the remainder of the tournament.

Given the strains of bubble life in the past 18 months, some England players contracted could still choose to miss part, or all, of the remainder of the IPL season.

The T20 World Cup begins on October 17. The start of the Super 12s – when England enter the tournament – is expected to be on October 24.

England are still set to tour Pakistan for a two-game T20I series, on October 14 and 15, which is intended to be their final preparation before the T20 World Cup. The Pakistan tour is still planned to go ahead, though it may yet come into doubt depending on quarantine requirements in both Pakistan and the UAE.