County cricket continues to lose but for Liam Plunkett the IPL call was simply too good to turn down
Exclusive interview: A back injury to Kagiso Rabada has offered the England seamer the priceless chance to earn over £200,000 for just two months work
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Your support makes all the difference.It was Liam Plunkett’s birthday on Friday – but he could have been forgiven for thinking all his Christmas’s had come at once.
A back injury to Kagiso Rabada had offered him a priceless opportunity to fulfil his dream of playing in the Indian Premier League that looks set to earn him over £200,000 for just two months work.
It also meant that Plunkett had swelled English involvement in this year’s competition to 11 players, a number that increased to 12 yesterday, when his Yorkshire team-mate David Willey signed for Chennai Super Kings.
The call-ups have severely weakened Yorkshire in the early part of the season and prompted Martyn Moxon, the county’s director of cricket to call for a cut-off window for late IPL call-ups.
Plunkett, though, had other more short-term things on his mind when The Independent caught up with him, like securing a visa for and jumping on a flight to Delhi in time for the franchise’s fixture against the Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur on Wednesday afternoon.
“I’ve been around the houses,” he says. “I got the call on Friday, which was my birthday, but everywhere that could sort the visa was shut over the weekend so I’ve had to sort it all today. I’ve barely had a minute to think.”
English passages to the IPL have rarely been plain sailing since the tournament began in 2008.
Back then, the prospect of counties, let alone England, giving up their prized-assets to compete in a T20 competition would have been dismissed out of hand.
The balance of power, though, has shifted considerably. Plunkett, however, prefers to think that increased English involvement is more down to dramatic improvements on the pitch rather than player power off it.
“Having that many players out there would have been unthinkable ten years ago,” he says. “Our white ball cricket in England has improved massively in the past few years. It would be stupid for teams to not pick us up because of the way we’ve performed in both the 20 over and 50 over format.
“We have got some serious talent here and I think tournaments like the IPL and the Big Bash (in Australia) recognise that.
“It is special isn’t it. It’s something that, as a player you want to play in at least once during your career. I’m hoping to go out there and impress and if you perform well and make some good friendships and partnerships then you never know what might happen in the future. It’s good to get a sniff now, at least.”
While Plunkett’s financial future looks rosy after his late whistle-up, there’s considerable disquiet from counties such as Yorkshire, who understandably feel that IPL franchises currently hold all the cards.
Losing aces like Willey – who has already committed to playing only white ball cricket – and Plunkett mean the county is playing catch-up almost from the off this season.
Counties like Sussex and Kent have been similarly affected. It’s hard to blame the players in this situation, though, with the kind of money on offer in the world’s most lucrative league providing a pull that’s almost impossible to ignore.
“I had been told that I wasn’t going to start in the Championship and to go away and get some overs under my belt,” he says. “As an opportunity, this was too good to turn down. I don’t know what’s going to happen, contract wise, if this continues to happen. Some of the counties might look to introduce white ball and red ball contracts for players in the future, a bit like what we’ve seen with England.
“Personally I would like to carry on playing red ball cricket but when you get a white ball opportunity the money is obviously great. In terms of red ball, I still love it, I didn’t get picked in the Ashes and probably won’t get another Test chance but I’m happy with where I’m at. Hopefully I can go out there, get some wickets, do well and then come back and do the same for Yorkshire and England.
“That’s the aim.”
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