England's IPL stars might not feature in the Lord's Test against New Zealand beginning in June, with many players finishing their 10-day quarantine this weekend.
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England’s IPL stars might not be available for the first Test against New Zealand beginning in Lord’s on June 2. According to various reports in the British media, Jos Buttler, Jonny Bairstow, Chris Woakes, Sam Curran and Moeen Ali, will not be rushed back. According to a BBC report, the English players will finish their mandatory 10-day quarantine this weekend. However, the window in preparation for the first Test is too tight. This might prompt England to field players like Ollie Robinson, Craig Overton and James Bracey.
The England players were the first to return back to their country after IPL 2021 was postponed indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic in India. The bio-bubble was breached when cases were reported in Ahmedabad and it spread to Delhi. Varun Chakravrathy and Sandeep Warrier tested positive for COVID-19. This forced the Kolkata Knight Riders vs Royal Challengers Bangalore game to be postponed.
More cases came up in the coming days. L Balaji, Kasi Viswanathan and Michael Hussey all tested positive in the Chennai Super Kings camp. When Amit Mishra and Wriddhiman Saha tested positive for COVID-19, the BCCI made the decision to postpone the IPL. Apart from these players and officials, Tim Seifert of New Zealand also tested positive for coronavirus.
Buttler was part of the Rajasthan Royals, Bairstow played for Sunrisers Hyderabad while Curran and Moeen had a superb run with Chennai Super Kings. Woakes also impressed with his performance for Delhi Capitals in the tournament.
When it comes to the potential availability of players, then the likes of Robinson, Overton and Bracey have been doing well in the County circuit. Overton, who last played in the 2019 Ashes, has taken 32 wickets for Somerset. Overton has taken three consecutive five-wicket hauls and has also hit two fifties.
Bracey, who plays for Gloucestershire, has also been in good form with four fifties and a century against Somerset. Robinson, on the other hand, turned plenty of heads when he took 9/78 against Glamorgan. He has also hit two fifties, indicating that he could be a good bat as well.
With Dom Bess suffering a broken finger and Jofra Archer potentially not being rushed back to the Test fold, it will be interesting to see how England manage their squad in a summer that could see them play six Tests. After the home summer, they will have the World T20 and the Ashes in Australia.
