LPL 2020: David Miller And Faf Du Plessis Amongst The Five Foreign Players Unavailable For The Tournament

Five marquee overseas players have pulled out from the upcoming and the first edition of Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2020. The list includes the likes of David Miller, Dawid Malan, Faf Du Plessis, Andre Russell and Manvinder Bisla. The inaugural season of the Lanka Premier League is scheduled to commence on the 21st of November and continue till the 13th of December.

South African players David Miller and Faf Du Plessis and English batsman Dawid Malan have confirmed their unavailability due to the limited-overs series in November. The English team will travel to South Africa next month to take part in three ODIs and as many T20Is, slated to begin on the 27th of November. Andre Russell will miss the competition due to injury while the reason for Manvinder Bisla’s exit remains unknown as of now.

Russell, who is part of Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2020, suffered a knee injury and has not played in the last three fixtures. Jaffna Stallions, Colombo Kings, and Dambulla Hawks had Dawid Malan, Faf Du Plessis, and David Miller as their marquee players respectively. Hence, LPL director Ravin Wikramaratne told ESPN Cricinfo that franchises have to negotiate with other players to take their spots.

Colombo Kings the hardest hit franchise of LPL 2020 yet:

Apart from Faf Du Plessis, Colombo Kings also had Manvinder Bisla and Andre Russell. The trio pulling out of the edition is undoubtedly a massive blow. With less than four weeks remaining for the start of the tournament, there are logistical problems left to solve.

Sri Lanka’s health minister has made 14 days of quarantine in hotel room compulsory for all the players, which some players have expressed dissatisfaction with. Nevertheless, Sri Lanka Cricket remains confident that the tournament will take place.

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