IPL 2018: England players set for early exit due to international commitments

What’s the story?

Amidst all the hullaballoo of the ongoing Indian Premier League, as many as four English players might leave the tournament earlier owing to their International commitments.

The four Test specialists who will leave the tournament early are Chris Woakes (RCB), Mark Wood (CSK), Ben Stokes (RR) and Moeen Ali (RCB) as England face Pakistan in a two-match Test series, starting on May 24.

The details

The ECB will in all probability recall all its players one week prior to the Test series which means that the aforementioned players will have to be in England by May 17- which is also the last week of IPL's league stage.

Stokes, Wood, and Woakes might well start for England against Pakistan, while Moeen Ali might be axed owing to his indifferent form over the Ashes and then the New Zealand tour.

In case you didn’t know…

Ben Stokes was the most expensive player in the IPL but has only underperformed in the tournament so far, both with the bat and ball for Rajasthan Royals.

Mark Wood played a few matches for the Chennai Super Kings, but had to benched due to his lack of impact.

Chris Woakes was given a chance by the Royal Challengers Bangalore, but he leaked plenty of runs which saw him replaced by Tim Southee.

What’s next?

Rajasthan Royals will most definitely miss Ben Stokes as on his day he can be a match-winner and as the tournament heads towards the final sprint, his absence can certainly impede their progress.

Author’s take

Over the years, the ECB has been reluctant to allow its players to take part in the Indian Premier League due to their own county season and International calendar.

However, they have softened their stance in the past couple of years, but then the players have had to return to resume their International duties which is only quite normal.