How banned duo could spark international turf war with India
Steve Smith and David Warner could play for Australia just 48 hours after their bans expire, under a tantalising proposal that could inflame relations with India.
Steve Smith and David Warner could play for Australia just 48 hours after their bans expire, under a proposal that could inflame relations with India.
The Daily Telegraph understands the Pakistan Cricket Board has proposed a schedule for a crucial pre-World Cup series against Australia, where the first match would take place two days after Smith and Warner become eligible for selection.
It’s a tantalising offer from Pakistan that could provide Justin Langer’s World Cup preparations with a massive injection … however, there is a catch.
Should CA agree, it would put them on a potential war path with the all-powerful Indian Premier League billionaires desperate for Smith and Warner to headline an already depleted tournament.
The PCB proposal understood to have been issued to CA is for a five-match series starting on March 31 and ending on April 13, perfectly timed to coincide with Smith and Warner becoming ‘selectable’ again on March 29.
Cricket Australia are yet to make any decisions on the proposal.
Pakistan are in a position where they have nothing to lose.
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Their players are banned from the IPL and coach Mickey Arthur would relish a golden chance to play a series on World Cup eve against a full-strength Australian line-up – most likely to take place entirely in the UAE.
However, the stakes are higher for CA, with bilateral international tours scheduled in the IPL window a virtual no-no for the major nations trying to stay sweet with the Indian powerbrokers who run the game.
CA may feel more emboldened this year however, given they’ve already signalled a World Cup training camp to clash with the back end of the IPL which has prompted a blacklisting of almost all Australian players at the auction, bar Smith and Warner who were already signed.
As much as Smith and Warner would jump at a chance to be guarantee their places for the World Cup, the schedule being proposed by Pakistan could prove another million-dollar whack to their back pockets.
It’s been estimated the disgraced pair have already lost upwards of $7 million from the ball-tampering scandal, and pulling out of their $2m IPL deals would be another blow.
Cricket Australia were leaning towards allowing Smith and Warner to play IPL when they thought dates for the Pakistan series would preclude them from being available until the final two matches.
But under a proposal allowing them to play the full series, the game changes.
Despite their standing as world class superstars, there is a huge risk associated with bringing Smith and Warner back cold for a World Cup as their first international-standard competition for 14 months.
Having five matches against Pakistan to re-establish their games and their relationships with teammates could be crucial.
Smith and Warner are banned from training with the Australian squad until March 29, so if the proposed schedule was agreed to and they were selected – it’s possible they would have to train in isolation until two days before the first match.
In other sports that might be a problem, but in cricket, as long as they’re getting net practice, there may be little concern.
It’s understood a decision over the proposed dates and the availability of Smith and Warner may ultimately become an issue for the Cricket Australia board.
Despite Pakistan pushing for Australia to play the first two matches of the series in Pakistan for the first time in 20 years – it’s understood that’s almost certainly not going to happen due to ongoing security fears.
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