Rajasthan Royals opening batsman Jos Buttler, confirmed his unavailability for the rescheduled phase of IPL 2021, which will be played in the UAE. This appears to be a major blow for the Royals, who were hoping for a turnaround in the second phase after losing 4 out of their 7 games played this season.

The second leg of IPL 2021 will clash with England’s international cricket calendar. England will tour to Bangladesh where they are slated to play 3 ODIs and 3 T20Is, which will be followed by Pakistan’s tour to England, leading to the T20 World cup in October.

Ashley Giles, the managing director of men’s cricket at the England Cricket Board expects the England players to be on International duty later this year, Buttler is of the same understanding. He said,

Usually the pocket of the IPL doesn’t clash with any International games, which makes it a very easy tournament to be available for. When it clashes with International Cricket, England will take precedence I’d have thought.

Also Read: IPL 2021 In UAE: New Schedule, Squads, Live Streaming And Venues

The England Board’s decision to allow players to participate in the IPL and miss some of England’s winter matches has always been criticized. Now with the rescheduled phase of IPL 2021 clashing with England’s international matches, it is very unlikely that English players will feature in the second leg of the tournament.

The unavailability is a major blow not only for the franchises but also for the league as England’s best International stars feature in the IPL.

UAE leg of IPL 2021 to start in September

Due to the covid-19 outbreak, the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League was suspended in early May. The season is all set to resume from September 9, with the finals scheduled on October 15 in the UAE, right before the T20 World Cup.

NEWS 🚨 : BCCI to conduct remaining matches of VIVO IPL in UAE.

More details here – https://t.co/r7TSIKLUdM #VIVOIPL pic.twitter.com/q3hKsw0lkb

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) May 29, 2021