Players are said to have expressed “robust views” to their representatives at the PCA, and believe there was insufficient consultation from the ECB before the introduction of a new policy. They are also looking for further clarity on specific scenarios that could arise both during the upcoming English summer and the ongoing offseason.
An ECB spokesperson confirmed to ESPNcricinfo on Monday that, under the terms of their policy, any players who have any provision to play red-ball cricket in their county contracts will not be considered white-ball specialists. That could have significant repercussions for the PSL in April-May, ruling a number of English players out.
A senior county source said that the new restrictions will ensure that the best cricketers in the country are available to play in the County Championship, and remind players that their county clubs are their primary employers. But others fear that a stringent interpretation could risk prompting a series of players to retire from red-ball cricket in order to play in the PSL, or in other leagues that clash with the English summer.
Players are also frustrated at the fact NOCs will be granted to all-format county cricketers for the IPL but not the PSL, which they perceive to be a major inconsistency. There is no explicit mention of either league in the published policy, but the ECB has given clear indications that it will continue to issue NOCs for the IPL as it has done in previous years.
“There’s anger and resentment around it,” one agent told ESPNcricinfo on Monday. “This new policy just seems to show that the power lies with India, and it seems to be about the ECB not wanting to upset India… Players feel as though they’re not being listened to: has the PCA put the players’ feelings across to the ECB robustly enough? Or has the PCA been sidelined on this?”
Further meetings have been scheduled for later this week, including one between the PCA and UK-based player agents on Wednesday morning. Daryl Mitchell, the PCA’s interim chief executive, told ESPNcricinfo on Friday that the union’s legal team were “completing a thorough check” of the new policy, raising the prospect of a restraint-of-trade lawsuit.
