File photo of Matthew Wade© BCCI/Sportzpics
Australia wicketkeeper-batter Matthew Wade will miss Gujarat Titans’ (GT) first match of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, so that he could take part in the Sheffield Shield final for Tasmania, according to ESPNcricinfo. The Sheffield Shield final for Tasmania will take place from March 21st to 25th, and the Aussie cricketer will miss the Gujarat-based franchise’s first game against Mumbai Indians (MI) on March 25.
However, his presence in their second game of the IPL against Chennai Super Kings which will take place on March 27 “could be tight”, as per ESPNcricinfo. While GT’s third game of the tournament will take place on March 31 against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
While speaking to the media, Tasmania head coach Jeff Vaughan confirmed that Wade has already spoken to GT and the IPL franchise has allowed him to take part in the Sheffield Shield final.
“He’s spoken with his IPL franchise and they’re happy to allow him to stay here, which probably equates to him potentially missing their first game. We feel very fortunate to have someone of Matt’s ilk coming back into our group, and his experience and his performances at the back end of our season,” Vaughan was quoted by ESPNcricinfo as saying.
After spending 10 years with Victoria, the 36-year-old cricketer returned to Tasmania during the 2017-18 season of the Sheffield Shield and was part of the side that lost the final match of the tournament to Queensland.
GT will head into the IPL 2024 without Hardik Pandya, who left the franchise after guiding the team to their maiden trophy in 2022. Pandya made his return to five-time champions Mumbai Indians and succeeded Rohit Sharma to become the captain of the franchise. Meanwhile, star opener Shubman Gill will lead the Gujarat Titans in IPL 2024.
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