Big Bash League; Steve Smith blocked from participating

            Australia’s best batter, Steve Smith, was barred from playing for the Sydney Sixers in the Big Bash League’s knockout rounds on Friday.

According to cricket.com.au, Smith’s plea to play for the Sixers in the qualifier against the Perth Scorchers was denied as “other states voted against permitting Smith to participate.”

Smith was not on the franchise’s playing roster in the event owing to prior national team commitments, but the postponement of Australia’s limited-overs series against New Zealand allowed the batter to participate in the finals. The CA, however, prevented Smith from playing for the Sixers owing to a regulation put in effect two weeks ago addressing substitute players for squads afflicted by Covid-related withdrawals.

“CA developed a local replacement player pool (LRP) from which all franchises must choose any fill-in – had Smith been put in that pool, he would have been available to any BBL club”, cricket.com.au said in a statement.

Sixers captain Moises Henriques was outraged by the judgement, claiming Smith is “one of the finest players in the world” and that IPL clubs pay “multi-million dollars” to have him on their team.

‘You have a former Australian captain and one of the top players in the world on your team’. You have IPL teams who pay multi-million dollars only to have this person on their squad. ‘Advertising, butts on seats, eyeballs on TVs – you do the math’, Henriques remarked, according to the website.