India’s biggest cricket festival Indian Premier League 2023, is set to start on 31st March, and every franchise is keeping an eye on the availability of their star players ahead of the tournament.
One of the successful franchises, Chennai Super Kings, has got a major blow ahead of the tournament. They have bought England Test captain Ben Stokes for a record Rs 16.25 crore in the mini-auction held in December.
But the news coming from the sources is that he will return home soon from the upcoming IPL finals to prepare for the Test series against Ireland and the Ashes.
The final of the IPL is set to be played on 28th May. England’s team will play a Test match against Ireland from 1st June; after that they have to play the Ashes series against Australia from 16th June.
Regarding playing in this series, Stokes said I would play. I will make sure I get enough time for both the series.”
Stokes said he would discuss what he needed to do to prepare for the Ashes, leaving options open to some players if they skip the Ireland Test.
Stokes said, “I would probably talk to every player and ask them what they need to be ready for the Ashes because those five games are the big games of the summer, and you have to think about what the players are doing.” What if something happens in the Ireland match, and we lose someone in the Ashes? These are some of the things where you must consider the options a player may want from that week. Obviously, against Ireland, The Ashes series is bigger than that match.”
There are currently 8 Test players scheduled to play in the IPL, six of whom are on full-time contracts. It will be interesting to see how many England players do it. Players like Joe Root, Mark Wood, Johnny Bairstow, Liam Livingston, Joffra Archer, and Sam Curran are included in this list.
