Cummins wants specific window for Tests to avoid clash with IPL

Australia’s Tests and ODI captain Pat Cummins has called for fixing specific window for Test matches to avoid a clash with the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Speaking during an interview, he said that a dedicated window for Tests is needed to help players, who wish to play in franchise cricket such as the IPL, manage their schedule, Sydney Morning Herald reported.

“Franchise cricket for some countries is more lucrative, more appealing than international cricket. If I went and played franchise cricket, I could probably be away for a half or a third of the amount we are for Australia,” Pat Cummins said.

“In Australia, you know Test cricket is from November to January and basically no other cricket is going to get in the way of us playing Test cricket then. If we can have specific windows for IPL but then also Test windows, that makes the decision-making for the players a lot easier,” he added.

The Australia skipper is the second player to have suggested organising international cricket outside the IPL window as England skipper Jos Buttler had expressed similar views.

Read more: PSL 2025 to go head-to-head with IPL as new window proposed

“It’s my personal opinion that there shouldn’t be any international cricket that clashes with the IPL. I think that these games have been in the calendar for a long time,” said Buttler in an interview. “Of course, leading into a World Cup, your No. 1 priority is playing for England and performing for England. I feel like this is the best preparation.”

It is pertinent to mention that the Indian Premier League’s (IPL) extended window in the international calendar starts in March every year, all the way to the beginning of June.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan Super League (PSL) is likely to go head-to-head with the IPL in 2025 as the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) proposed new window for the marquee league.

The PSL is held every year in the February-March window but due to its collision with ICC Champions Trophy, slated for February 2025, the cricket board came up with an alternative proposal.

“Due to the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 being held in the traditional event window, the event window for the 2025 event will be 7 April 2025 – 20 May 2025,” proposed PCB in a meeting held in May.