The England and Wales Cricket Board’s (ECB) announcement of a preliminary squad for the T20 World Cup has thrown a curveball at the IPL 2024 playoffs. With the mega T20 event scheduled for June in the USA and West Indies, several star English players will be unavailable for the crucial stages of the IPL. This is because the 15-member England squad will be in action for a T20I series against Pakistan prior to the T20 World Cup.
The crux of the issue lies in a four-match T20I series between England and Pakistan, scheduled to begin on May 22 in Leeds. This directly clashes with the start of the IPL playoffs, commencing on May 21. As a result, key English players will be unavailable for the crucial knockout stages, leaving their IPL teams scrambling for replacements.
Buttler, Salt & Jacks to leave their IPL teams in wobble
This clash of schedules presents a significant challenge for several franchises. Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), though not considered strong playoff contenders, will lose the services of their exciting young prospect Will Jacks and experienced fast bowler Reece Topley.
However, the bigger concern lies with Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), both currently expected to qualify for the playoffs. RR will be without the explosive Jos Buttler, who has been in phenomenal form throughout IPL 2024. Similarly, KKR will lose the dependable Phil Salt, another key contributor to their batting lineup. Salt is among the top-five highest run-getters in IPL 2024, having smashed 392 runs at a strike rate of 180.65.
List of English players set to miss from IPL 2024 playoffs
| Player | Franchise |
|---|---|
| Jos Buttler | Rajasthan Royals (RR) |
| Phil Salt | Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) |
| Will Jacks, Reece Topley | Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) |
| Moeen Ali | Chennai Super Kings (CSK) |
| Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Jonny Bairstow | Punjab Kings (PBKS) |
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