Leg Buys: Aussie IPL coach cops axe, missing cash causes big stink

Australia’s IPL contingent looks certain to shrink next season, while an overseas T20 competition is in hot water over unpaid payments to players, reports DANIEL CHERNY in this week’s Leg Buys.

Former Tasmanian paceman and coach Adam Griffith is likely to depart the Indian Premier League’s Royal Challengers Bengaluru amid changes to the club’s support staff.

The perennial IPL bridesmaid and club of Indian icon Virat Kohli has already appointed former Indian wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik as its new batting coach after a fourth-place finish earlier this year.

However it’s understood Griffith is also set to leave the club where he has been bowling coach since the 2020 season.

RCB is coached by former England coach and Zimbabwean great Andy Flower, who joined the club last year, moving from the Lucknow Super Giants where he was replaced by Justin Langer.

Flower also worked with the Australian men’s team during last year’s tour of England and World Cup in India.

IPL clubs have until October 31 to commit to up to six players to be retained for next season, with the rest to head into the pool for the league’s mega auction.

Adam Griffith was the coach of the Hobart Hurricanes. Picture: Getty Images

Australian guns Glenn Maxwell and Cameron Green are eligible to be retained by RCB however Green’s IPL availability for next year appears highly doubtful after he was sent for back surgery to deal with a stress fracture. Cricket Australia said Green was expected to be sidelined for around six months.

It’s believed Australian white-ball opener Travis Head will almost certainly remain at the Sunrisers Hyderabad after a dominant first campaign for the club where helped take the side to the final, only to be beaten by Mitchell Starc’s Kolkata Knight Riders.

The Sunrisers are coached by Australian assistant Daniel Vettori.

Griffith remains on the books of Cricket Victoria as the men’s team’s bowling coach. He previously served as coach of both the Tigers and the Big Bash League’s Hobart Hurricanes. He was also a contender for the Melbourne Renegades job eventually filled by Cameron White.

Sunrisers Hyderabad's Travis Head is almost certain to stay at Sunrisers Hyderabad. Picture: AFP

BANGERS AND CASH

Less than two and a half months from the start of the new Bangladesh Premier League season, a host of players are yet to receive their full payments from the 2024 edition that concluded in March.

Six well-placed cricket sources confirmed the situation, which is the continuation of a longstanding issue in the league.

It’s believed some players are owed tens of thousands of US dollars, and that there is a reluctance from some to commit to the next instalment of the competition while the issues remain.

While not in the same financial realm as the IPL, the BPL has over the years attracted some of Twenty20 cricket’s most sought-after players.

West Indian white-ball stars Andre Russell and Sunil Narine both played in the league earlier this year, as did long-time New Zealand all-rounder Jimmy Neesham and English pair Alex Hales and Will Jacks.

Steven Smith captained the Comilla Victorians. Picture: AFP

BBL sensation Josh Brown also featured in the competition, signing with the Chattogram Challengers on the back of his outstanding exploits with the Brisbane Heat.

Steve Smith and David Warner captained the Comilla Victorians and Sylhet Sixers respectively during their 12-month bans from playing for Australia following the Cape Town ball tampering scandal.

The BPL draft was held on Monday, with Bangladeshi international paceman Taskin Ahmed the first player selected, taken by new club Durbar Rajshahi.

Former Melbourne Stars spinner Tom O’Connell was taken by the Chittagong Kings, who are coached by World Cup-winning Australian quick Shaun Tait.

The upcoming edition of the BPL begins on December 27, finishing ahead of next February’s Champions Trophy in Pakistan.

The Bangladesh Cricket Board was contacted for comment.

Originally published as Leg Buys: Aussie IPL coach cops axe, missing cash causes big stink