Josh Little to miss Ireland's tour of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka due to franchise league commitments - Reports 

Ireland pacer Josh Little will not be part of the national team squad for the upcoming subcontinent tour. The Andrew Balbirnie-led team are scheduled to visit Sri Lanka and Bangladesh during the March-April window to play a full-fledged series.

Little is currently representing the Pretoria Capitals in the inaugural SA20 league and will play for the Multan Sultans in the upcoming edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL). He is also set to partake in the Indian Premier League (IPL) after becoming the first Irish player to land a contract in the cash-rich league. He was roped in by the Gujarat Titans (GT) during the mini-auction in December last year for ₹4.4 crore.

The 2023 IPL is reportedly slated to begin on April 1 and continue until the first week of June, before the World Test Championship (WTC) final.

Noting that Ireland are expecting to have Little back among their ranks for the home series against Bangladesh in May, Balbirnie told Cricbuzz:

"Josh had an amazing 12 to 18 months and that is shown getting picked up in the South African League in the IPL and the PSL and these opportunities are incredible."

He continued:

"We are going to miss him (Josh). He is not going to come here and play in the Bangladesh tour and he is not going to Sri Lanka for the Test tour and he will be back for Super League games against Bangladesh in May."

Little made history at the T20 World Cup 2022 by becoming the second Irish player after Curtis Campher to claim a hat-trick in the competition's history. He achieved the feat during the Super 12 contest against New Zealand.

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"Josh Little's opportunity to play in the IPL is really too good for him to turn down" - Andrew Balbirnie

The 23-year-old has cultivated a reputation for being one of the emerging left-arm pacers on the circuit, especially in the shortest format. Stating that Josh Little's stint in multiple franchise leagues across the globe would prove to be beneficial for Irish cricket, Andrew Balbirnie said:

"Josh Little's opportunity to play in the IPL is really too good for him to turn down and it only helps Irish cricket I think that exposure. If he has a good IPL or PSL then those competitions will say well Ireland cricket must be going in the right direction. We wish him all the best and I watched him last night."

Ireland will play three ODIs, three T20Is, and a one-off Test against Bangladesh in March 2023. They will then travel to Sri Lanka to compete in two ODIs and one Test.

While the official schedule is yet to be released, their tour of Bangladesh is set to begin on March 8 and culminate on April 8.

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