Warner, Cummins, Maxwell, Hazlewood to miss start of IPL due to Pakistan tour

Australia stars David Warner, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Glenn Maxwell are all set to miss the start of the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL) due to the team's tour of Pakistan. While the four players are set to not play in the tour's limited-overs leg, they won't be allowed to play in the IPL until the end of the matches in Pakistan. 

While the dates for the 2022 IPL is yet to be announced officially, it is speculated to begin in late March. The four players, on the other hand, will be allowed to take part in the tournament after April 5, which is when the tour ends with a lone T20I in Rawalpindi.  

"We've worked really hard with our multi-format players over a long period, and not just this (Pakistan) series coming up that leads into the IPL," Australia chief selector George Bailey is quoted as saying by cricket.com.au.

"One of the things we're really keen to ensure is that we can maintain having our best Australian players playing for Australia for as long as possible, medium and longer-term.

"We're constantly managing and working with them around their own personal situations to make sure they get what they need, and also that we can continue to get what we need.

"So from that point of view, the NSP (national selection panel) will continue to be quite pragmatic around how we approach each series."

Bailey, a former Australia captain who himself played for the Kings XI Punjab in the 2014 and 2015 seasons of the IPL, said he "fully respects" the value of the tournament in developing players' skills.   

"I fully respect the IPL as a tournament," Bailey said when asked about the perpetual question as to whether players should prioritise country or cash.

"I think they're at the forefront of the T20 game.

"I think it's been a really important tournament for the skill development of some of our players, so it's important not to underestimate that going forward," he said.