Former England skipper Michael Vaughan shocked the cricketing fans when he suggested young batting sensation Tom Banton to skip the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and play County cricket to prepare for the Test side. After a lot of speculation over the last few weeks, Banton has finally confirmed his availability for the mega-rich tournament. 

Banton grabbed eyeballs for his spectacular show in the Vitality Blast last year which bagged him a deal in the Big Bash League (BBL) and subsequently in the IPL. Kolkata Knight Riders roped in the dashing opener during the last month's auction in Kolkata for his base price of Rs 1 crore. Following his fantastic run, Tom Banton enhanced his reputation further in the ongoing BBL. 

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The Englishman featured in seven games for Brisbane Heat and smashed three fifties including a 16-ball half-century. Following Tom Banton's growth as a batsman, Vaughan asked him to focus on breaking into the Test side by playing in the county championship instead of IPL.

“If I were in charge I would be on the phone this week to Tom Banton telling him to give up his IPL deal and play the first few weeks of the county season for Somerset because there is a slot available at No 6 in the Test side,” Vaughan wrote in a column for Telegraph Sport.

However, contrary to Michael Vaughan's views, Tom Banton has confirmed his availability for the upcoming IPL which starts from March 29. The cricketer from Somerset stated that it is a dream to play in the cash-rich league before saying that he also wants to play Test cricket but there is still time for that. 

“Yes, 100 percent. When I was growing up, IPL was definitely something I thought I’d love to do, and play for England and definitely in Test cricket as well. But we’ll just have to wait and see,” Tom Banton said.