An IPL 8 window in New Zealand test calendar

An IPL 8 window in New Zealand test calendar: The Indian Premier League (IPL) season 8 auction was held in Bangalore earlier this month, where international, domestic and uncapped Indian players were bought and sold. Even as the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 is proceeding in Australia and New Zealand. The IPL season 8, months before its commencement has started to press an impact on upcoming international tours.

The New Zealand Cricket (NZC) team is scheduled to tour England, where the first test at the Lord’s cricket ground commences from the 21^st of May. While the IPL season 8 is scheduled from April 8- May 24. To enable its players to participate in the cash rich tournament the NZC has kept a window for the players to even skip the first two practice games that they were to play before the first test. And has set May 21 as the deadline for players named in the team to report for the first test.

All this while they had also tried to convince the ECB to postpone the series to help their players’ who will be participating in the IPL, but the ECB has not subscribed to the idea and stood firm to continue as it was originally determined.

There are not one or two but nine New Zealand international players who were traded at this year’s auction and are expected to play crucial roles for their teams. All the big names that the Black Caps team has right from skipper Brendon McCullum to pacer Tim Southee and new comers Mitchell McClenaghan and Adam Miln have IPL contracts with themselves.

Head of New Zealand Cricket Lindsay Crocker reportedly told the Dominion Post that the ECB had denied approving their request to change the tour schedule and neither did they agree to play the 50 over’s matches ahead of the test series.

Lindsay Crocker said. “Clearly it is not ideal preparation for us,”But the bottom line is some of our players have the chance to participate in the IPL and in order to be picked up we had to allow them a playing window. If we had truncated that it would have reduced their marketability.”

Acknowledging the importance of IPL in all their players financial and cricketing careers they had arrived at the conclusion that they should be allowed to play in the league on condition of reporting back on or before May 21.

“They can earn money in the IPL that we can’t contemplate paying them. But it was important to us, and important to them, that they don’t miss any internationals so we came up with an arrangement that they were all back in time to play in the first Test.”