Kevin Pietersen has already shown interest to join the Indian Premier League and only a no objection certificate from ECB stands in the way of the England captain`s participation in the next edition of the cash-rich Twenty20 tournament, IPL chairman Lalit Modi said.
“I am very keen for Kevin to take part in the IPL. He has already agreed to be part of it, we just need an NOC from the ECB,” Modi said.
The BCCI vice-president said the ECB has agreed in principle to release players for the IPL. However, there`s a catch to it — IPL will have to release 20 players for England`s proposed Twenty20 tournament.
“The ECB have agreed in principle to release the players for the next season. It has, of course, strings attached.”
“We are evaluating those strings, whether we can agree to it or not. The good news is at least the ECB has moved from the position of not allowing their players in the IPL,” Modi said.
He added that players can now be traded mid-season. “There may be times when teams have too many players or are in need of players. We need to give an opportunity to those teams to keep the players as a currency, so that they can get a benefit out of that by trading,” Modi told a cricket website.
Taking a cue from the English Premier League planning the `39th Game`, which will see top football clubs playing one more round of matches on neutral venue, Modi said that could be tried in the IPL.
“We have a lot of international players who have a great appeal in many countries, so for us to take our league abroad would be easier.”