Josh Philippe pulls out of IPL 2021, RCB sign New Zealand's Finn Allen as replacement

After storming the Big Bash League, Australia's young gun Josh Phillippe has pulled out of the IPL 2021 just a month before the cash-rich tournament begins. Philippe, who had an impressive debut IPL season with the Royal Challengers Banglore (RCB), last year had been retained by the franchise prior to the auctions. Philippe, who made his debut in 2020, played five games and scored 78 runs for the franchise. 

The 21-year-old wicket-keeper batsman set the BBL 2020 on fire with his sublime form and his absence is expected to hurt RCB. The reason behind Philippe's absence from IPL 2021 is still unknown. 

Meanwhile, RCB has announced the signing of New Zealand's wicketkeeper-batsman Finn Allen as a replacement for the Australian. Finn has featured in 12 First-class games for New Zealand and scored three half-centuries. Finn had a base price of INR 20L equivalent to that of Josh Philippe. It will be Finn’s debut VIVO IPL season this year when he plays for Royal Challengers Bangalore.  

IPL to begin on April 9

The 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is all set to kick off on April 9 from Chennai as BCCI unveiled the schedule for the marquee event. The IPL Governing Council informed that IPL 2021 would begin at MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, with defending champions Mumbai Indians taking on the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). After nearly two years, the IPL extravaganza will return home with Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai & Kolkata hosting the marquee event.

The final of IPL 2021 will be played at the newly inaugurated Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on May 30, making it the first-ever IPL game to be played at the venue. Chennai, Mumbai, Kolkata & Bengaluru will host 10 matches each while Ahmedabad and Delhi will host 8 matches each, between April 9 and May 30. In addition, every team is set to play at a neutral venue and all teams will play at 4 out of 6 venues during the league stage. 11 doubleheaders where 6 teams will play 3-afternoon matches & two teams will play two-afternoon matches are scheduled for the marquee tournament. The fixtures of the tournament have been mapped in a way that every team will travel only three times during the league stage, thus reducing commute and minimising risk.

Image Credits: IPL