Coach Flower prepared to pull England players out of IPL

SYDNEY - Coach Andy Flower has said he would pull England players out of the Indian Premier League in order to keep them fresh for national duty.

“I don’t blame any of the players for wanting to go and play. But it is tricky because the schedules are so heavy. Rest is sometimes as important as the hard schedules we put them through, especially for our front-line attack. They have made themselves available for the IPL but it is dangerous in terms of the risk of injury and shortening their [cricketing] lifespan,” The Guardian quoted Flower as telling the Mail on Sunday.

Referring specifically to fast bowler James Anderson, Flower said: “He has just played five Tests in a row and that’s a magnificent achievement in itself, so he has to rest now, but if he has to rest during IPL we will make that decision too. At the moment he is available for IPL but if it is necessary for him to rest, that will happen.”

Paul Collingwood, who has just retired from Test cricket, said he was surprised that no franchise snapped up Anderson and Swann during the first round of bidding.

“They are world-class bowlers and would have done fantastically well at the IPL,” said Collingwood, who has been signed by the Rajasthan Royals. (ANI)