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May 22, 2024
Pakistan cricket great Wasim Akram lambasted England cricketers for leaving IPL 2024 midway because of international commitment.
Some Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises will be without significant star power as many England players have returned him ahead of the playoffs because of international commitment. Jos Buttler, Phil Salt, Will Jacks, Reece Topley, etc., have all left the T20 league for England’s T20I series against Pakistan. Since the announcement, the England board has faced severe criticism, with former Indian cricketers like Sunil Gavaskar and Irfan Pathan expressing their disappointment at the overseas stars’ exitIrfan even suggested that overseas players shouldn’t bother coming to the IPL if they can’t play the entire season. Even Pakistan cricket legend Wasim Akram is in agreement.
“If you cut salaries, will it affect anything if your team doesn’t win after reaching the playoffs?
You’ve put in all the hard work and in the last hurdle, your boys leave because they have to play for the country. It’s not fair,” Akram said in a chat on Sportskeeda.
“This is what you play for. That’s why it’s frustrating not just for fans but owners, and captains of the teams for any league. So, I agree with Irfan [Pathan], come for the entire tournament otherwise don’t come,” he added.
Earlier, Irfan shared a fiery social media post asking England players to come for the entire IPL or not come at all.
Even Indian cricket great Sunil Gavaskar was critical of England stars for returning home before the completion of the IPL.
However, former England captain Michael Vaughan found nothing wrong with England players returning home for the Pakistan series.
“If you are going back to represent your country, which England players have done, I think that’s fair enough. They are playing a series against Pakistan. The England players wouldn’t have gone back if it wasn’t for the Pakistan series,” Vaughan told Cricbuzz.
“The series was on the calendar. With English cricket, the defence of the 50-over World Cup was a poor one by England here in India. So I think, Jos and his team, 5 games against Pakistan, they get together. The actual lead-up to the 50-over World Cup wasn’t perfect either. There were a lot of swaps and changes. They have now gone back to 5 matches, get all the squad together, work on a bit of culture, everyone playing their right roles, I think it will give them a better chance.”
In a candid chat, MS Dhoni spoke about his life after international retirement, as fans continue to guess if he has played his last IPL game.
One of the game’s biggest legends, what MS Dhoni has given to cricket, probably no other player ever can. Though the Chennai Super Kings’s campaign in the Indian Premier League (IPL) was cut short this time, Dhoni didn’t fail to entertain with his cameos in the T20 league. If the match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru was the last people have seen of Dhoni, he did sign off on style, hitting a 110-meter six before being dismissed for what could be the final time in his career.
Despite being 42 years old already, Dhoni did very well preparing himself for the challenge that IPL throws at every player. In a candid chat, Dhoni admitted that he has had to work really hard to prove his fitness and excel against younger players in the IPL.
“The toughest thing is… I am not playing cricket throughout the year. So I have to be fit. Once I come, you are competing against youngsters who are fit and playing international cricket. Professional sport is not easy, nobody gives you a discount for age. If you want to play, you have to be as fit as the other guy. Age does not really give that grace to you. So, eating habits, a bit of training and all those things are there. Social media, thankfully, I am not on social media, so there’s less distraction,” Dhoni said on Dubai Eye 103.8 YouTube channel.
It’s been a while since Dhoni quit international cricket. The 2019 ODI World Cup was the last for the veteran wicket-keeper batter. Since then, IPL has been the only professional event in his career.
But the man who gave everything to the sport on the field has had to keep himself busy with other passionate interests, like cars, bikes, and farming, since then.
“Once I quit international cricket, I wanted to spend a bit more time with my family. But, at that same time, to be mentally active, to have that passion to stay focussed — for me, I love farming, for me it is the motorbikes, I have started getting into vintage cars. These things de-stress me. If am stressed, I would maybe go to the garage, spend a couple of hours over there and I will just be fine, I would come back,” he said.
“I have always felt growing up with a pet, whether it is a cat or a dog… I prefer dogs though. They have unconditional love towards you. I have said this in a previous interview, even if I lose a game and come back, my dog greets me the same way,” he added.
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Katarzyna Nowak is a seasoned writer with over five years of experience in editorial content, news reporting, and cricket sportsbook app reviews. As an author for Top Cricket News, she combines her deep understanding of the sports betting industry with a passion for cricket, delivering insightful and accurate content that keeps readers informed and engaged.
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