Aussies to play IPL exhibition matches
AUSTRALIA’S women will be able to play in IPL exhibition matches in India this year after tensions between the two countries’ cricket boards denied them the chance in 2019.
Meg Lanning, Ellyse Perry and Alyssa Healy were not invited to last year’s high-profile games, as the relationship between Cricket Australia and the Board of Control for Cricket in India hit rock bottom.
The star trio had originally agreed to play in the event before being overlooked as negotiations over the men’s oneday series in the middle of the Australian summer wore on.
But the relationship between CA and the BCCI has now been repaired, with Sourav Ganguly installed as president of the Indian body.
The two boards met in January and Ganguly confirmed this week that India had agreed to play a day-night Test in Australia next summer. It was also agreed that Australia’s best women cricketers would be made available for IPL exhibition matches, which will be expanded to include a fourth team in 2020.
It’s hoped the additional team would result in more of Australia’s stars being invited to feature.
“We went to India for the one-day series, part of the board, and we met with the BCCI and it was a great chat,”
CA board member Mel Jones said at Fox Cricket’s Women’s World Cup launch.
“It was really positive on a variety of different fronts with a variety of different things.”
The move is a significant one, as Indian players and officials hope to launch a fully fledged Women’s IPL in as soon as two years time.
Meanwhile formal confirmation on the pink-ball Test is expected to come shortly, but it’s expected it will be played in
Adelaide, while the Gabba will host the Border-Gavaskar series opener.
India has also agreed to host England in a day-night Test, after having played their first against Bangladesh in November.
“Hats off to India too. They do the most touring of all the national teams in international cricket,” Jones said.
“They are expanding the game constantly. They had their own day-night Test too.”