IPL 2019: Players who may miss matches due to international duty 

IPL 2019 is just about to begin and most of the IPL teams have begun the preparations and training sessions. The present edition of the Indian Premier League is a unique scenario where the ODI World Cup will be held right after the tournament in the same year as the general elections of the world’s largest democracy will be held. Add to that the fact that BCCI has decided to conduct the entire season of IPL in India itself by considering the election schedule side by side

Even after going through all these hiccups, the IPL teams have to manage one other thing this season. It is the fact that many of the overseas players will be leaving the tournament midway or will be joining later in the season as the tournament progresses. Only the New Zealand and West Indies players (even though West Indies have international matches from May 5) are expected to play the full season of IPL 2019.

Here in this article, let us try to have a sneak peek into the scenarios where the overseas players might be leaving the IPL 2019 for international duty.

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#8 Kolkata Knight Riders

Sunil Narine is expected to be available for the full season of IPL 2019

If there is any team which is immune to some extent of these possible changes are the Kolkata side. But ironically, they have been the side which has been the most affected due to injuries. Shivam Mavi, Kamlesh Nagerkoti and Anrich Nortje have been ruled out for this season and Sandeep Warrier and KC Cariappa has been roped in. They are yet to name a replacement for Anrich Nortje.

Among the international schedule clashes the West Indies and New Zealand players are expected to be present for the full season of IPL 2019 and hence Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Carlos Brathwaite, and Lockie Ferguson will be available.

Harry Gurney is unlikely to get the nod to be in the England World Cup Squad. Chris Lynn too has fallen short of the expectations of the Australian selectors after the heroics of Usman Khawaja and hence will be available for KKR duty.

The only possibility is that Joe Denly might be picked in the England squad for World Cup, in which case he might leave as early as April 25.

To sum up, almost all the overseas recruits will be available in the camp and KKR will be the team that is least affected owing to the smart picks they have made in the IPL auctions 2019.

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#7 Delhi Capitals

Sandeep will play the full season of IPL 2019

Delhi Capitals is another team that has played it smart picking overseas players. Trent Boult, Sherfane Rutherford, Keemo Paul, Sandeep Lamichhane, Colin Munro and Colin Ingram are available for team selection for the entire season which is a big plus to the Ricky Ponting coached side.

The only trouble might be the fact that Kagiso Rabada might have to return by May 10. Also, Chris Morris will not be available for the first few days of the IPL due to the T20 matches between South Africa and Srilanka. But it is a good thing for Morris as he has not played international cricket for quite some time.

Delhi Capitals can be expected to have a near perfect squad for the entire length of the IPL 2019 season and that can be attributed to the foresight of Ricky Ponting who avoided Australian and England players in the auction.

To sum up, Delhi Capitals will not have serious issues to deal with in this season of IPL.

#6 Kings XI Punjab

Punjab under the stewardship of Mike Hesson has also made smart buys in the IPL auctions 2019 and has ended up with a safe scenario. One of the troubles they might have to look forward to is with respect to David Miller who will not be available for the first few days of the IPL due to the T20 matches between South Africa and Sri Lanka. Further, he might have to return back by May 10 for World Cup duties.

Considering that Afghanistan has international schedule commencing from May 8, Mujeeb Ur Rahman could be missed in the playoffs if Afghanistan Cricket Board decides to call back their players.

Andrew Tye is presently not in the reckoning for the Australian World Cup squad and hence is a safe bet for Kings XI Punjab. The same seems to be the case for Sam Curran in the England team setup and Hardus Viljoen in the South African setup. Chris Gayle and Nicholas Pooran could play the entire tournament helping the cause of Kings XI Punjab.

To sum up, Hesson will not have serious issues to deal with in this season for Punjab.

#5 Mumbai Indians

Mumbai will once again rely on Pollard as their finisher for IPL 2019

5 out of the 8 overseas recruits are sure to play the entire season of IPL 2019 for Mumbai Indians. Kieron Pollard, Ben Cutting, Evin Lewis, Adam Milne, and Mitchell McClenaghan are the five sure shot players of Mumbai.

It is to be seen whether Jason Behrendroff makes the cut to the Australian World Cup squad. As things stand now, he could be selected and might have to return back by May 1 which will see him missing the final matches of the league and the playoffs. Also, he will not be available for the first 10 matches of the tournament owing to the ODI matches against Pakistan.

While Lasith Malinga who is the captain of Sri Lanka will return back on May 6, Quinton de Kock might be available till May 10.

Considering the fact that there are adequate backups available in the Mumbai Indians squad for the 3 uncertain players, Mumbai Indians can come good without any issues.

#4 Chennai Super Kings

Dwayne Bravo will once again be hoping to be the matchwinner for CSK in IPL 2019.

Shane Watson, Dwayne Bravo, Mitchell Santner and Sam Billings are available for the entire season of IPL 2019 for Chennai. The two South African players in the squad – Faf Du Plessis and Imran Tahir will have to return back by May 10. But still, they will be available for the major chunk of the season and hence would not affect the chances of CSK.

The case of David Willey is uncertain as he is on the radar of England selectors and could be selected to be part of the World cup squad. If so, he might have to return by April 25.

To sum up, the issue is not acute for CSK as they will have the services of all the overseas players, barring maybe David Willey, for 90-95% of the IPL season. Chennai Super Kings could well make a strong claim to retain the IPL trophy with their near perfect squad under Dhoni.

#3 Royal Challengers Bangalore

ABD is all set to return to his second home - Bangalore

There are four overseas players who will be available for the entire season of IPL 2019. AB de Villiers, who has retired from international cricket, is a sure shot option. Apart from him, Colin de Grandhomme, Tim Southee and Shimron Hetmeyer will play the full season of IPL 2019.

In all the likelihood, Heinrich Klassen, who is not in the reckoning of South Africa World Cup squad will be available for RCB. That makes it 5 overseas players out of 8.

The issue will crop up in the case of Nathan Coulter-Nile and Marcus Stoinis, both of whom will be expected to return back by May 1 for International duty. Both of them will also not be available for the first 10 days of IPL 2019. Moeen Ali is the other player who is expected to return back by April 25 for England duty.

To sum up, RCB will have to survive a major phase of IPL 2019 without 3 key players. Even though there is bench strength, they will miss the services of Moeen Ali and Marcus Stoinis in that period.

#2 Sunrisers Hyderabad

IPL 2019 will mark the return of David Warner after the ban

Hyderabad has three players who they can trust to carry their expectations for the entire season- captain Kane Williamson, fellow New Zealander Martin Guptill and Australian pacer Billy Stanlake.

While Jonny Bairstow could return by April 25, Shakib Al Hasan could go back by April 15. David Warner who is making a comeback to International cricket is expected to be picked in the World cup Squad and will return by May 1 for the Australian camp.

Another major issue that the Sunrisers Hyderabad might have to face is that Afghanistan has the international schedule from May 8. Rashid Khan and Mohammed Nabi, who are an integral part of the Hyderabad side, might not be available for the playoffs of IPL 2019 if Afghanistan cricket board pulls the lever.

To sum up, Sunrisers Hyderabad will have a hard time in the playoffs if the Afghan duo is unavailable. Barring that, Tom Moody can manage other hiccups quite well.

#1 Rajasthan Royals

Ben Stokes and other English players will return midway through the IPL 2019

Rajasthan Royals is the team that will be the worst affected in IPL 2019. Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler will leave by April 25. Steve Smith and Ashton Turner will leave by May 1. Turner will also not be available for the first 10 days of IPL 2019.

The case of Jofra Archer is also uncertain as he might get selected in the World Cup squad of England as he becomes eligible for national team selection. If he does get selected, he too will leave by April 25.

The only overseas recruits who will be available for the entire season might be Liam Livingstone, Ish Sodhi, and Oshane Thomas. Rajasthan Royals clearly runs the risk of even not being able to fill up the overseas quota in this IPL during the final phases. The batting department of Rajasthan Royals which heavily depends on the likes of Buttler, Stokes, Smith and Turner will be heavily affected by the international schedule and there are no replacements for these players in the Rajasthan camp.