England, Australia players' availability uncertain ahead of IPL 2022 auction: Report

Though the BCCI has finalised the list of players set to go under the hammer in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 mega-auction, the schedule conflict with international calendar has put Australia and England players' participation under doubt. According to a report by Cricbuzz, franchises are yet to confirm the players' availability for IPL 2022 scheduled to be held between March and May. 

Australia are set to tour of Pakistan from March 3 to April 5 while the England and Wales Board is planning to call back its players in late May in order to prepare for the home series against New Zealand in June.

"In an ideal scenario, we would have preferred to know the availability with the auction list," a franchise official told Cricbuzz. "It helps in planning but there were occasions we were given this crucial the night before the auction."

The BCCI, on Tuesday, had informed franchises the list of 220 players from 14 countries available for the auction.

"The IPL 2022 Player Auction Rules and the availability details of Overseas players along with the update on the players who have been reported or banned for suspect bowling action will be sent in due course," BCCI informed the teams.

With the auction set to take place in Bengaluru on February 12 and 13, the attending franchise officials will have to present two negative RT-PCR tests, done 72 hours before February 12 noon. The BCCI has not mentioned any quarantine restrictions for those who have not traveled overseas. However, overseas participants can take part in the auction only if they had landed in India at least seven days before the auction and have undergone seven-day quarantine.

The BCCI had also asked franchises to confirm the names of those who will be attending the auction by Friday. A maximum of 10 members can attend the auction with a maximum of eight being allowed to be present at the auction table.