'Biggest problem with this is the fact that...' - Mark Butcher's blunt 'why IPL is more special' take on ECB's NOC norms

The controversies are surrounding the English cricket corridors amidst the newly introduced NOC policed by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) over players’ participation across the various franchise T20 leagues. Meanwhile, the board has also barred cricketers with red-ball contracts from taking part in the T20 franchise leagues.

In the same line of events, Hampshire skipper James Vince opted to sign a white-ball-only contract with his club for the upcoming season. He has taken this decision to be available for the Pakistan Super League (PSL).

Why is the IPL more special? – Mark Butcher

However, the ECB has exempted the cash-rich Indian franchise T20 tournament, the Indian Premier League (IPL) from its NOC norms. It transliterates into the fact that 12 England stars will be appearing in the 18th edition of the tournament.

In the same line of events, former England cricketer Mark Butcher has also come up with critical remarks while speaking about the ECB’s NOC policy. He also questioned the board’s mindset of exempting IPL from the NOC norms.

“I honestly think the biggest problem with this is the fact that they've said that the IPL doesn't count. I think that's where the big issue comes in. Well, why? Why is the IPL more special than any of the others? You wouldn't be able to make the case that it's more of a developmental ground for players than any of the other competitions. The PSL is a pretty high standard, so why would that one get an exemption, whereas players have to make big decisions about whether they play red-ball cricket or not just to play in the PSL? That causes a problem for the entire programme,” said Butcher on Wisden Cricket Weekly podcast.

“I think it's been handled messily, that's the point. If you have one exemption from the rule the bigger players will be able to go off and do what they want, and they will largely be England-contracted players I suppose, who won't be involved in the County Championship, but even so, to have one competition stand aside at the expense of all the others makes it a very difficult argument to make from the ECB's point of view,” he added later.