Aussies' late start for IPL season confirmed

Australia men's team selection chair George Bailey has confirmed the big-name players absent from the upcoming limited-overs matches in Pakistan won't be available for their respective Indian Premier League franchises until that international commitment is completed.

But despite his earlier decree that "we certainly won't be releasing players to the IPL while Australia are playing", Bailey noted he remained supportive of Australian cricketers' involvement in the game's most lucrative domestic tournament because of the skill development it fosters.

Star quartet Pat Cummins, David Warner, Josh Hazlewood and Glenn Maxwell were notable absentees from the 16-man Australia squad named today for the three ODIs and solitary T20I that will follow next month's three Tests on the Qantas Tour of Pakistan.

While Maxwell was unavailable for Australia's first full international tour to Pakistan since 1998 due to his upcoming wedding, the remaining trio (along with fast bowler Mitchell Starc) will return home following the Tests and prior to taking up their IPL stints.

Although a schedule for this year's IPL is yet to be confirmed, it is reportedly set to begin on the final weekend of March and days before the first Pakistan-Australia ODI in Rawalpindi.

As a result, Australia representatives will be unable to join the two-month tournament until after the bilateral T20I is completed in Rawalpindi on April 5.

Bailey, who captained Australia in more than 50 limited-overs internationals and played almost as many matches in the IPL, was asked today if he saw an issue with players not representing their country in white-ball matches but then fronting up for a lengthy IPL stint immediately afterwards.

"That's a very black and white way of looking at it," Bailey said.

"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.

"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 said it was his understanding CA's Executive General Manager High Performance and National Teams, Ben Oliver, was finalising protocols that would dictate no centrally contracted Australia player was available to join an IPL team until April 6.

Of the 13 Australians retained on existing IPL deals or bought at this month's mega-auction, the only ones currently not bound by CA contracts (and thereby available from the tournament's start) are Daniel Sams, Riley Meredith, Nathan Coulter-Nile and $A1.53 million purchase Tim David.

Australia faces a hectic men's team playing schedule over the next couple of years across all formats as they honour Test commitments postponed by the COVID-19 pandemic and prepare for World Cups in ODI (India in 2023) and T20 (Australia later this year) competitions.

However, amid juggling the need for rest and respite among all-format players such as Cummins, Hazlewood and Warner, Bailey sees a benefit beyond the purely commercial for players' involvement in the IPL which continues to operate largely free from scheduling conflict with international fixtures.

"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."

While admitting selection of the squad for the limited-overs leg of the Pakistan tour had been "a bit of a challenge", the opportunity to deploy some different faces will be instructive for selectors as they begin to ponder their options for next year's ICC World Cup.

Due to COVID-19 curtailment of international fixtures and a focus on T20 cricket with back-to-back World Cups in that format in 2021 and 2022, Australia has played just 16 ODIs since their semi-final loss to eventual champions England at the most recent 50-over World Cup 30 months ago.

And even though pitch conditions in Pakistan during March are unlikely to resemble those rolled out for the global 50-over showpiece scheduled for India in October and November 2023, Bailey concedes any experience in alien terrain will be invaluable for Australia's players.

"I think sub-continent exposure is going to be important," he said.

"I don't really know what to expect from the Pakistan wickets, and I don't know of similarities with India where the World Cup is going to be.

"But any sub-continent exposure is fantastic.

"Pakistan's a place we don't know a lot about, so to be heading off on a tour and not have a really clear-cut idea of what's ahead is pretty exciting."

Qantas Tour of Pakistan 2022

Pakistan squad: Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan, Abdullah Shafique, Azhar Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Fawad Alam, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Nawaz, Nauman Ali, Sajid Khan, Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood, Zahid Mahmood

Australia Test squad: Pat Cummins (c), Ashton Agar, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Steve Smith (vc), Mitchell Starc, Mark Steketee, Mitchell Swepson, David Warner. On standby: Sean Abbott, Brendan Doggett, Nic Maddinson, Matthew Renshaw

March 4-8: First Test, Rawalpindi

March 12-16: Second Test, Karachi

March 21-25: Third Test, Lahore

Australia ODI and T20 squad: Aaron Finch (c), Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Jason Behrendorff, Alex Carey, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Ben McDermott, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa

March 29: First ODI, Rawalpindi

March 31: Second ODI, Rawalpindi

April 2: Third ODI, Rawalpindi

April 5: Only T20I, Rawalpindi

All matches to be broadcast in Australia on Fox Cricket and Kayo Sports