Irfan Pathan furious over England players leaving IPL for Pakistan series

Former Indian pacer Irfan Pathan has lashed out at England players over their early exit from the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) to partake in the T20I series against Pakistan.

Pathan took to his official X account and criticised English players, urging them to complete their full commitment. “Either be available for full season or don’t come!” Irfan Pathan posted.

Prior to Pathan, former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar also echoed similar sentiments, demanding the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to take action and penalise the players for pulling off from the playoff stages of the IPL.

“I am all for players choosing country before anything else but having assured various franchises about their availability for the full season, if they pull out now, it will be letting down the franchises which probably pay them more money in one IPL season which they don’t earn in a few seasons with their country,” Gavaskar wrote in his column for Mid Day.

“The franchises should not only be allowed to deduct a substantial amount from the fee that the player was bought for but also not give the Board, to which the player belongs, the stated 10 per cent commission of the fee that each player gets.”

England are set to play a four-match T20I series against Pakistan, starting from May 22 at Headingley.

England squad for Pakistan series and T20 World Cup

Jos Buttler (c), Phil Salt, Will Jacks, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Duckett, Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali (vc), Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Tom Hartley, Adil Rashid, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood, Reece Topley

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