Oct 2, 2008

Sport - Cricket;Gough can be part of IPL next year

LONDON: Former England spearhead Darren Gough can play in the Indian Premier League's (IPL) second season beginning next year.

Gough, who retired this summer from the first class cricket, was approached by the IPL official and will be meeting them next week.

"The IPL has always been an interest for me. I can still bowl, I've proved that this season, I still get a buzz from cricket and it would be nice to test myself at that level again,” Gough, 38, was quoted as saying in BBC Sport.

Gough - still the only man to take 200 wickets for England in one-day internationals - was only fit enough to appear in half of Yorkshire's Championship matches this summer.

Earlier this year he said he would only consider a short-term tilt at Twenty20 cricket in 2009 if he knew his body could cope with the stress.

He also said he was likeliest to make that return with Yorkshire rather than with one of the IPL sides.

But the bowler now feels that it's worth a try.

"The IPL would be a great buzz for me and I need cricket to be a buzz. It's something I know I could do.

"I would do the full IPL programme of six weeks but realistically it might be a short-term deal as a replacement for someone else. Every single cricketer wants to play in the IPL and there's not so many places available this year."

"I could have gone last year on a short-term deal. Now I'm retired it would be an ideal thing."

No comments: