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Untitled Document
 ECB refuses to release players for IPL
8th Apr 2008 13:01 IST
Agencies
Putting international commitments ahead of the IPL, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) today rejected the possibility of allowing English players to feature in the lucrative Twenty20 competition.
''The reason we established central contracts was to enable the head coach to determine the amount of cricket played by England players. We have no reasons to change that structure. I can't see Peter Moores releasing a centrally contracted England player just before the Ashes series,'' ECB chairman Giles Clarke was quoted as saying by the local media in London.
''What if a player got injured in the IPL and couldn't play all summer. I am pretty sure that Moores will want them to rest and the country will want them to rest, too.''
''We aren't changing our season under any circumstances - there's no possibility of us doing it,'' he added.
''Our centrally contracted players have very heavy workloads, so we need to be realistic here.''
The ECB chairman asserted that England had a right to impose rest periods on their top players, and suggested that there would be a national outcry if they did not commit themselves entirely to preparing for next summer's Ashes series. It was not so long ago, he recalled, that Kevin Pietersen had been complaining of burnout.
''The West Indies tour will be earlier for the very simple reason that we would like to give the England players a break before the Ashes series,'' Clarke said.
''The spectators in this country want to know that our players are fit, sharp and ready for the Ashes series. They want the England team in the best possible shape. That is what they are concerned about.''
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