IPL return would be unjustifiable if players miss national tours, reckons Aaron Finch

Australia limited-overs captain Aaron Finch has been taken aback by the withdrawal of several players for their tours to the West Indies and Bangladesh. Apparently, the top players include Steve Smith, David Warner, Pat Cummins, Jhye Richardson, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Marcus Stoinis, and Daniel Sams.

All the above players were last seen in the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and supposedly were tired of the bio-bubble norms. The players also had to undergo hard quarantine in the Maldives as well in Australia before they could see their family. Already their unavailability for the Caribbean tour is confirmed, but the players visiting Bangladesh for the white-ball series too are now in doubt.

What surprised Finch was that the other five players’ unavailability due to various personal reasons and mental health issues. The Australian captain was not surprised by Warner and Cummins’s absence from the tours as he knew the duo’s plans to skip the series due to family time.

The fast bowler is expecting his first child with Becky Boston, while Warner wanted a break from the game due to bio-bubble fatigue.

Naturally, Finch is a bit disappointed as he does not have his first-choice players for the West Indies tour. “The other guys – I was a little bit surprised,” Finch was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au on SEN Radio. “I’ve chatted to them all – a little bit surprised but it’s also understandable … but I wish that they were there.”

Aaron Finch feels the seven players’ absence from the West Indies tour will hamper their participation in IPL

Apart from the two tours, the Australian bound players are also scheduled to feature in the second leg of IPL which is set to take place in UAE on September 19. Finch feels the likes of Warner, Cummins, Stoinis, and Maxwell would most likely give the IPL a miss due to a packed schedule which includes the ICC T20 World Cup 2021.

“It is purely based on the workload coming up with a T20 World Cup and a huge home summer. It’s really tough. It’s a tough situation that everyone has been put in, but personally, I would find it hard to do that knowing how difficult it is and how challenging it is mentally, and on your family as well. That’s what I would think,” he concluded.