10 Players who may not play the entire IPL 2020 in UAE

The IPL is finally set to hit the floors. After plenty of rumours of cancellation and further delay, the IPL was officially announced by the BCCI last week, The news was received with a lot of joy by fans who have been eagerly waiting for IPL to happen and bring cheer to which has otherwise been an unfortunate year. However, the road ahead for IPL seems slightly rough and will need thorough planning proper execution.

Since the IPL has been announced, there has been quite a lot going on. As IPL is a global tournament and every single player wants to play in it, a lot of changes have been made to the international schedule and few series have even been compromised to make a clear way for the IPL to happen. It is going to be played between 19th September and 8th November, and other cricketing bodies have cleared that time frame of any other cricket.

However, there are a few series before and after the IPL which may cause a slight problem for the franchises. An England-Australia limited-overs series, which had been earlier delayed due to the coronavirus, is scheduled to begin with a T20I on 4th September and go till 16th September when the last ODI will be played.

While the players may fly to Dubai from London on the very same day, they will have to undergo the COVID-19 test, and only if they test negative will they be allowed to move ahead. The whole procedure is expected to take 48-72 hours including isolation. The players and franchises also must follow the Standard Operating Procedures to be released by the BCCI which may take an additional 7-10 days.

Hence, most of the players flying back on the 16th are likely to miss the first 8-12 days minimum. It doesn’t stop here. Few Australian players may even fly home early for a training camp before India arrives to play a full-fledged, highly-anticipated Test series in November.

To make matters worse, South Africa has gone under a national lockdown following the exponential rise of the coronavirus and although the players are likely to receive a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the cricket board, international flights have been restricted and hence the players will need the government to lift travel bans for them to be able to come to India.

Let’s have a look at 10 top stars, who may miss out on playing the entire IPL for their franchises:

1. AB de Villiers

One of the biggest stars of the IPL in the last decade, AB de Villiers is at the risk of missing the entire IPL. He has been one of RCB’s batting mainstays and has scored more than 3500 runs for them since 2011, playing several match-winning innings.

While RCB hasn’t been able to win a single IPL, De Villiers along with Virat Kohli have been their men in shining armour. Having retired from international cricket last year, IPL is the platform where most of his fans get to witness his class and will be hoping for things to improve in South Africa so that AB can travel to the UAE. His absence could be a massive jolt to RCB.

The Virat Kohli-led side, who is still yet to clinch the title, will be banking on stars like De Villiers to sail their ship on the UAE wickets. The South African star holds the ability to turn the tide in his side’s favour in minutes.

2. Kagiso Rabada

South Africa’s pace sensation, Kagiso Rabada who was also last year’s Purple Cap holder, will be another South African to perhaps miss the entire IPL unless restrictions are eased.

He is Delhi Capitals’ strike bowler and banking on his performance last year where he picked up 24 wickets, the Capitals reached the playoffs for the first time since 2012. They would have been hoping for a similar performance from him this time around especially after the extended rest he has got but may have to go ahead without him in the team if the current situation doesn’t change.

Rabada is anticipated to do the job in death overs for DC in this season too. In 18 IPL games so far, Rabada has scalped 31 wickets at an impressive average of 17.93. The 25-year-old also has 2 four-wicket hauls under his belt.

3. David Warner

The most prolific IPL batsman in the last 3-4 years, David Warner, who is also the Sunrisers Hyderabad’s captain, would be missing a bunch of games for them if he plays the entire England series as well as returns earlier.

While Warner has been a phenomenal captain for them and they will surely miss their skipper, Hyderabad, in their team, have another very capable captain in Kane Williamson who led them to the finals in 2018 edition. It will be Warner’s explosive batting at the top of the order which will be a big loss for SRH team.

Warner boasts an exemplary record in the cash-rich league, having scored 3305 runs from 126 games at an impressive average of 43.17. The southpaw also has 4 tons and 44 half-centuries to his name.

4. Steve Smith

Another Australian batsman who will have to miss games due to the series prior and after the IPL is Steve Smith. While Smith hasn’t set the IPL on fire like a batsman of his skill would have liked to, he is still a very important member of the Rajasthan Royals and was going to lead them in the upcoming edition.

Smith will perhaps be the most important player for Australia in the Test series against India. In contrast to SRH, Royals may not miss his batting that much but his captaincy skills and temperament in the team will be something that they will miss dearly especially in the end stages.

In the previous season, Smith had amassed 319 runs in 12 games which included a brilliant unbeaten knock of 73 runs. The Australian stalwart had struck three half-centuries last season for the Rajasthan franchise.

5. Pat Cummins

Pat Cummins who has played just 3 seasons of the IPL with the last one being back in 2017, was this year’s costliest buy in the auction, going to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for a mammoth price of INR 15.5 crores.

The Kolkata franchise would be having massive expectations from the star but they may now be in for a rude shock. Cummins is the Number 1 Test bowler and one of the key players for Australia in Tests as well as limited-overs formats.

The pacer’s fitness and safety will be a massive concern for Cricket Australia (CA) and he may end up being one of the first players to be called back for the all-important Test series. KKR will, however, be hoping their star attraction can participate in maximum games and prove his worth.

6. Glenn Maxwell

The T20 sensation Maxwell was to turn up for Kings XI Punjab this season and provide their middle-order with the much-needed strength they have been lacking since the last few seasons.

Maxwell is also an integral part of the Aussie line up and is bound to play all the games against England. Thankfully for Punjab, Maxwell isn’t in the scheme of things in the Test arena hence once he arrives, he will be available to play the rest of the season.

Maxwell had taken a break last year to look after his mental health, and Punjab will be hoping he has come back fresh mentally and physically and goes out all guns blazing in UAE where he had a phenomenal run in 2014.

7. Jos Buttler

England international Jos Buttler, who has created a reputation for himself as one of the most destructive limited-overs batsman, will play for England before arriving for the IPL.

The wicketkeeper-batsman’s absence in the early stages will certainly hurt Rajasthan Royals. Since his move up the order a couple of seasons back, Buttler has been a revelation in IPL and international T20s. In 45 IPL matches, Buttler has gathered 1386 runs at an average of 35.53, which includes nine half-centuries.

Rajasthan will hope their ace batsman completes the required formalities after arriving in UAE in the shortest time possible and joins them and do what he does best– bat like a champion and smash scintillating knocks at an explosive rate.

8. Ben Stokes

Another crucial player for Rajasthan, Stokes will be missing out too due to his commitments for England. Stokes, the finest all-rounder of this generation, provides all teams he plays for, an unbelievable balance.

Rajasthan had bought him at a hefty price of INR 12.5 crore in the 2018 auction hoping he would do wonders for them. But even Stokes would admit that he hasn’t been able to create as big an impact as he would have liked for the Royals.

However, coming after a historical and successful year, Rajasthan would expect Stokes to do well for them once he is in the team. The all-rounder has recently performed brilliantly across all formats and Stokes would also hope to unfurl his potential and class in this year’s IPL.

9. Jofra Archer

Rajasthan seems to be the team which will be most affected by England- Australia series as even their 4^th main overseas player, the supremely talented Jofra Archer, now a permanent feature of England squad, will miss out in the initial phases.

Archer, like Stokes, will be looking to provide more performances of note, although he has done decently well in the last couple of seasons with 26 wickets in 21 games. He is looked upon as one of the brightest prospects for the future, and Rajasthan would want him to put up performances of his calibre in UAE.

Keeping the controversies at bay, there’s no denial about Archer’s bowling ability. A fast bowler with a high action capable of speeds above 90mph can certainly prove lethal in the UAE conditions.

10. Eoin Morgan

The England captain, perhaps the most obvious one to be missing out, is going to turn up for Kolkata Knight Riders. Despite being one of the most successful limited-overs player and captain, Morgan hasn’t played much of the IPL but will be looking to change that.

Morgan brings in the stability and experience in the KKR squad which they had missed last year. He may or may not have been in their starting XI if he was available but being around the team would surely have befitted the youngsters at the start a big tournament.

Nevertheless, like his other England teammates, Morgan is expected to join his franchise after missing the initial few games and KKR would be hoping Morgan can help turn their fortunes around.