KEY POINTS:
New Zealand's elite cricketers had cause to celebrate off the field yesterday with seven current or former internationals listed in today's second Indian Premier League player auction in Mumbai.
The inclusion of a strong Black Caps contingent - including strike bowlers Kyle Mills and Chris Martin a day after they propelled New Zealand to a crushing 189-run victory over England in Hamilton - is welcome news for New Zealand Cricket as they try to prevent players aligning to the unsanctioned Indian Cricket League.
NZC chief executive Justin Vaughan had lobbied Lalat Modi, his counterpart at the Board of Control for Cricket in India, in recent weeks to have more New Zealanders involved and therefore protected from advances from the ICL.
Those discussions seem to have been fruitful with Ross Taylor, Jamie How, Peter Fulton, Jeetan Patel and James Franklin named among 18 players available to the eight franchises as they finalise their rosters before the inaugural competition starts on April 18.
"It's great,' said Vaughan. "The IPL is a really good opportunity for players to combine it [Twenty20] with their international playing commitments."
Opting for the "rebel" ICL alternative effectively spells the end of a player's international career so NZC has a clear preference for the International Cricket Council-endorsed tournament.
"I think the players genuinely want to play for New Zealand and if they can also supplement their income through the IPL and give them additional playing opportunities then that's great," Vaughan said.
Brendon McCullum, Daniel Vettori, Stephen Fleming, Jacob Oram and Scott Styris were signed in the original draft last month, benefiting from a spending spree that saw US$42 million ($53.57 million) spent on some of the game's most marketable players.
The second auction will be significantly smaller with eight franchises taking the chance to fork out any money left over under their US$5 million salary cap. The amounts are: $374,000 (Bangalore), $23,750 (Chennai), $71,250 (Delhi), $262,500 (Hyderabad), $1.7 million (Jaipur), $107,500 (Kolkata), $292,250 (Mohali) and $53,750 (Mumbai).
New Zealand coach John Bracewell welcomed more players being involved.
"My immediate reaction is I'm delighted that a few of our guys are starting to get that recognition on the international stage and are getting the opportunity to play in that competition and make some reasonable dollars."
He was non-committal when asked when he would like the IPL players to join the tour of England.
Because the IPL players are paid on a pro-rata basis Vettori, McCullum and Oram have already expressed a desire to play as many games as possible before joining the tour, which starts on April 27.
Vaughan said a decision would probably not be made until the third test against England, starting in Napier on March 22.
* WHO'S UNDER THE HAMMER
New Zealand: Ross Taylor, Peter Fulton, Jamie How, Jeetan Patel, Chris Martin, Kyle Mills, James Franklin.
Pakistan: Mohammad Yousuf, Misbah-ul-Haq, Mohammad Hafeez.
South Africa: Ashwell Prince.
Australia: Brad Hodge, Shane Watson, James Hopes, Luke Pomersbach.
Sri Lanka: Prasanna Jayawardene.
Bangladesh: Mohammad Ashraful, Mashrafe Mortaza.
- NZPA
