NEW DELHI: England's T20 World Cup-bound players, currently engaged in their IPL commitments, are expected to "return in time" for a preceding four-match T20I series against Pakistan, as announced by the country's cricket board on Tuesday.
In preparation for the T20 showpiece event slated for June across the USA and the West Indies, England unveiled a 15-member squad, marking
Jofra Archer
's return to international cricket after an absence exceeding 14 months.
This identical squad will also compete in the T20I series against Pakistan, commencing on May 22 at Headingley.
"Selected players, currently playing in the Indian Premier League, will return in time for the series against Pakistan, which gets underway at Headingley on Wednesday 22 May 2024,' the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said in a statement after naming the
T20 World Cup
squad.
Some of the notable English players who will have to depart the IPL prior to the commencement of the
Pakistan series
include:
Jos Buttler
(Rajasthan Royals),
Phil Salt
(Kolkata Knight Riders), Will Jacks, and Reece Topley (Royal Challengers Bengaluru),
Moeen Ali
(Chennai Super Kings), Sam Curran, Jonny Bairstow, and Liam Livingstone (Punjab Kings).
Teams like Royals and Knight Riders stand to be the most affected as they are in contention for the playoffs at this stage of the tournament.
However, the departure of English stars may not significantly impact teams such as Punjab Kings and RCB, given their unlikely qualification for the playoffs.
The IPL league matches conclude on May 19.
The England World Cup squad is scheduled to fly to the Caribbean on May 31 in preparation for England's opening group match against Scotland at the Kensington Oval, Barbados, on June 4.
(With PTI inputs)
English (US) ·