‘Anger and resentment’: PCA holds crisis talks over ECB NOC policy

English players held crisis talks with the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) on Monday in response to the ECB’s new policy on No-Objection Certificates (NOCs), which the board’s chief executive Richard Gould says will prevent domestic competitions being “undermined” by overseas leagues.

Players are said to have expressed “robust views” to their representatives at the PCA, and believe there was insufficient consultation from the ECB before the introduction of a new policy. They are also looking for further clarity on specific scenarios that could arise both during the upcoming English summer and the ongoing offseason.

An ECB spokesperson confirmed to ESPNcricinfo on Monday that, under the terms of their policy, any players who have any provision to play red-ball cricket in their county contracts will not be considered white-ball specialists. That could have significant repercussions for the PSL in April-May, ruling a number of English players out.

Several recent England internationals, including Saqib Mahmood, Luke Wood and George Garton, are on county contracts which primarily cover white-ball cricket but also contain ‘pay-as-you-play’ options for the Championship. As a result, they will not be granted NOCs to play overseas during the English season – but would be if they retired from red-ball cricket.

A senior county source said that the new restrictions will ensure that the best cricketers in the country are available to play in the County Championship, and remind players that their county clubs are their primary employers. But others fear that a stringent interpretation could risk prompting a series of players to retire from red-ball cricket in order to play in the PSL, or in other leagues that clash with the English summer.

Players are also frustrated at the fact NOCs will be granted to all-format county cricketers for the IPL but not the PSL, which they perceive to be a major inconsistency. There is no explicit mention of either league in the published policy, but the ECB has given clear indications that it will continue to issue NOCs for the IPL as it has done in previous years.

For example, Jamie Overton – who is contracted to Surrey rather than England – will be granted an NOC to play in the IPL for Chennai Super Kings after he was signed at last weekend’s mega-auction, missing the first two months of the Championship season as a result. But if Overton had gone unsold in the IPL and then signed a PSL deal instead, he would not have been granted an NOC.

“There’s anger and resentment around it,” one agent told ESPNcricinfo on Monday. “This new policy just seems to show that the power lies with India, and it seems to be about the ECB not wanting to upset India… Players feel as though they’re not being listened to: has the PCA put the players’ feelings across to the ECB robustly enough? Or has the PCA been sidelined on this?”

Players are also seeking clarity on the likely impact of the new policy on their movements in the ongoing off-season. The ECB has told players that they will not grant NOCs for two tournaments that overlap to avoid a situation where players could earn more from being eliminated early. But some have already signed deals in clashing leagues on the understanding that they would leave one midway through.

Further meetings have been scheduled for later this week, including one between the PCA and UK-based player agents on Wednesday morning. Daryl Mitchell, the PCA’s interim chief executive, told ESPNcricinfo on Friday that the union’s legal team were “completing a thorough check” of the new policy, raising the prospect of a restraint-of-trade lawsuit.