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Australia's Adam Gilchrist will take part in the inaugural Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 tournament in April, in spite of the two-year stand-down rule.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India confirmed that: "Gilchrist will play. He has already got a no objection certificate from the Australian board," IPL chairman Lalit Modi said after the first day of the IPL meeting with representatives of the eight franchises.
The tournament organisers had agreed with most international boards, including Australia, not to choose players until they had been retired for at least two years. Gilchrist, 36, is retiring from international cricket next month. But Modi said the Indian board had given the IPL governing body the powers to break the rules on the two-year "cooling off" period for recently retired players.
Australian players are in danger of losing their contracts because of a sponsorship row between Cricket Australia (CA) and IPL, however. The CA want protection for its sponsors during the IPL, a request the organisers rejected.
"They will not get global sponsorship protection," Modi said. "No sponsor of any country, national team, will have any rights over the IPL under any circumstances," he added.
The league, expected to feature many of the game's top players, is an effort to counter an unofficial Indian Twenty20 league which began late last year. The 44-day IPL starts on April 18. Teams will play home and away games leading to a grand final. The first year will feature 59 matches played in late afternoon for prime-time television.
Meanwhile, Nathan Bracken's career-best 5-47 inspired Australia to a 128-run win over Sri Lanka in Friday night's World Cup final rematch at the SCG.
Michael Clarke top-scored with a patient 77 not out while Gilchrist also had to battle hard on the two-paced pitch for his 61 off 81 balls for Australia in their 6-253.
In reply the Sri Lankans collapsed to be bowled out for 125 off just 31.3 overs. The victory puts the world champions on top of the tri-series standings with seven points, including a bonus point, ahead of India (4 points) and Sri Lanka (2 points) with all three teams having played two matches.
The tourists lost 3-10 in 13 balls to be 6-84 and never recovered, with Bracken appropriately claiming the last wicket when Muttiah Muralitharan was caught in the deep for 11.
Australia host India at the Melbourne Cricket Ground today.
