Joe Root won't be available for IPL 2017

The mainstay of the English batting line-up and arguably the greatest batsman of the modern generation Joe Root confirmed on Tuesday that he won’t be available to play in the cash-rich Indian Premier League in 2017 because he is eager to spend some quality time with his newborn son. Root who has scored heaps runs irrespective of formats was supposedly approached by several franchises of the T20 league which is scheduled to start on April 5.

“It is a shame because there is a really good window in the international calendar to play. But looking at the schedule, especially next winter, I am going to be away for long periods,” Root was quoted as saying by the British media. “This will be a great opportunity to spend time at home and watch [son] Alfred grow up a little bit.

“A lot of great things would come from the IPL, a lot of great experiences and I am sure it would help to improve my game but at the moment being at home is my priority and I want to make sure I do not miss out on that. It is quite tough being away in these early days so it will be nice to catch up,” Root added.

Root played a fine hand during the 1st ODI at Pune where England ended up scoring a mammoth 350 but failed to defend that after whirlwind centuries from Virat Kohli and Kedar Jadhav left them shell shocked.

Also read: Joe Root: England need to work on their bowling plans for Virat Kohli

“It was disappointing how it panned out considering the start we had. One thing we noticed is that early on he chanced his arm which you have to, I suppose, to get up near the run rate. We didn’t get the opportunities to stick, and in hindsight, if we could have slightly more individual plans to him then that could be a way to go. He got one just over the third man and it looked like we were going to take a wicket at any stage in that five-over period after [MS] Dhoni got out,” Root was quoted as saying by the Guardian following their loss in the 1st ODI.