SYDNEY: Australia's white-ball skipper Aaron Finch has expressed his "surprise" at so many players pulling out of the tours of the West Indies and Bangladesh and said that "they would find it hard to justify going back and playing the second half of the Indian Premier League (IPL)".
Seven Australian cricket stars, including Pat Cummins, Steve Smith and David Warner, pulled out of their national team's upcoming limited-overs tours of the two countries as Cricket Australia (CA) recently announced an 18-member squad.
Cummins, Glenn Maxwell, Warner, Smith, Marcus Stoinis, Jhye Richardson and Kane Richardson have confirmed their withdrawal from the upcoming tours following which CA head selector Trevor Hohns said that he was "naturally disappointed not to have all players available for the Australian team".
While resting Warner and Cummins was part of CA's strategy and Smith is nursing an elbow injury, the withdrawal of others has not gone down well with Finch.
"This is only my personal opinion, I think they would find it hard to justify going back and playing that second half of the IPL purely based on the workload coming up with a T20 World Cup then a huge home summer," Finch told former wicketkeeper-batsman Adam Gilchrist on SEN WA.
The suspended IPL will likely be completed between September 18 and October 10 in Abu Dhabi, while the T20 World Cup is scheduled between October 18 and November 15.
"It's a tough situation everyone has been put in but personally I'd find it hard to do that knowing how challenging it is mentally and on your family."
"Pat Cummins and David Warner, that was a long-term plan for them that they weren't going to go on this tour from the outset. Having a big summer last year followed by IPL with a T20 World Cup and a view to the Ashes, guys who are playing three formats of the game, it can be so brutal on them travelling and playing in bubbles.
"I was a little bit surprised (with the others). I've chatted to them all. A little bit surprised but also understandable. I know from my own point of view having gone to the UK then all the way through the home summer, I know towards the end of that year I was absolutely cooked mentally. Almost when the season finished it's a great relief so I can understand, but wish they were there," opined Finch.
The Australian team will leave for West Indies on June 28 to play five T20Is and three ODIs. They will ten head to Bangladesh for five T20Is between August 2 and 10. IANS
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