Pat Cummins, Aaron Finch to miss first five games for Kolkata
Kolkata (image source : BCCI)
The Kolkata franchise will begin their Indian T20 League 2022 campaign against Chennai on 26th March 2022. However, they will be missing the services of two Australian stars, Pat Cummins, Aaron Finch, in the first five matches of their campaign.
David Hussey, the team mentor for Kolkata, confirmed the development. Hussey said that Pat Cummins and Aaron Finch will not be available for the first five matches of the franchise due to them being on the Pakistan tour. Notably, Aaron Finch was bought as a replacement for English opener Alex Hales, after the latter pulled out of the tournament citing bio-bubble fatigue reasons. Notably, CA have allowed the Australian players to play in Indian T20 League but only after April 5.
“Well, it is a concern, you want your best players available, but international cricket should be the para-limit. Every cricketer should want to play international cricket for their countries so they have commitments that way. I think Cummins and Finch will miss the first five games but they will be cricket fit and cricket ready,”- Hussey said as quoted by Indian express.
Australia is currently on a tour of Pakistan. The tour will conclude on the 5th of April. So, taking into account the mandatory quarantine period players will have to serve before they can join the team, Cummins and Finch will only be available from the sixth match for the franchise.
Hussey further said that when the two players join the team, they will perfectly fit into the squad given the quality they possess. He also showed his belief in Shreyas Iyer, the new captain of the team, adding that Iyer is a born leader and would successfully lead the team in the coming years.
