Warner isin talks with Cricket Australia for a big-money deal to bring him back to the Big Bash League after an absence of almost a decade,and his management has indicated he will no longer be going to the UAE. Ex-Brisbane Heat hitter Chris Lynn has also been courted by the UAE league’s organisers.
Unlike every other domestic Twenty20 league,including the BBL,the IPL,the Caribbean Premier League and the new South African competition,the UAE tournament has made provision for its teams to recruit as many as 12 overseas players in their squads. Nine are allowed in the playing XI at once,with only two local players required.
By contrast,no more than four overseas players at a time may be selected in teams in any of the world’s established Twenty20 tournaments. These regulations mean that the host board of a competition must be developing enough local talent to ensure high-quality teams,while also limiting the number of overseas players able to be recruited.
Alongside the global system of “no objection certificates” handed out by boards to players,these regulations ensure that countries can still prioritise international matches in an increasingly crowded calendar.
Overseas Twenty20 player limits in squads and teams
- BBL:Six contracted,three in playing XI
- IPL:Eight contracted,four in playing XI
- CPL:Five contracted,four in playing XI
- PSL:Five contracted,four in playing XI
- South Africa:Seven contracted,four in playing XI
Should the new league be allowed to go ahead under its existing regulations for overseas players,cricket authorities are concerned it would create a “wild west” market in which tournament organisers had very little need to develop players in the countries where they host events.
Incredibly,the overseas player regulations for the new UAE league were run past the ICC chief executives’ committee in November last year without much opposition. Sources with knowledge of the meeting toldThe Age andThe Sydney Morning Herald that only one board representative - West Indies CEO Johnny Grave - raised any objections to the rules at the time.