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reason why only eight of the 24 English cricketers in the Indian Premier League auction attracted offers — with Joe Root, Alex Hales and Jonny Bairstow (right) among those surprisingly snubbed — is understood to be historical. There is still animosity towards England in India for the way the Giles Clarke-led ECB turned their back on the IPL at its inception in favour of doing T20 business with super crook Allen Stanford. There are also no English coaches at the eight IPL franchises.