McDonald to miss Australia’s tour of England

Sydney: Australia’s senior assistant coach Andrew McDonald will miss next month’s tour of England owing to a pre-existing commitment with his IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals, the country’s cricket board said on Friday.
‘Australian men’s team Senior Assistant Coach Andrew McDonald will not travel with the squad to the UK to fulfill a pre-existing commitment as Head Coach of the Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League,” Cricket Australia said in a statement. The former Australia all-rounder had replaced Paddy Upton as the head coach of Rajasthan Royals last year. Australia is scheduled to travel to England to play three T20 Internationals and as many ODIs from September 4-16. The 13th edition of IPL is set to take place in the UAE from September 19 to November 10 after it was shifted out of India due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Royals are expected to fly to the UAE after August 20. The 39-year-old will resume his duties with the Australian men’s team at the conclusion of the IPL.
Several players from England and Australia, including top draws like David Warner, Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Steve Smith and Pat Cummins are likely to miss the first week of IPL as the tournament’s SOP requires six days of quarantine on arrival in the UAE. (PTI)