By IANS
Melbourne : Australian coach Tim Nielsen has no problems with players taking part in the Indian Premier League (IPL) before their crucial series against West Indies.
Nielsen will discuss the ideal preparation for the West Indies series with captain Ricky Ponting, Cricket Australia (CA) operations manager Michael Brown and fitness staff in Sydney next week.
Nielsen has not decided when he will require his players to gather before the Test squad flies to the Caribbean May 8, but said he was not opposed to them playing in the lucrative Twenty20 tournament in India.
“As long as it fits in and Cricket Australia is comfortable with it, I don’t have any problem,” Nielsen was quoted as saying in The Age.
“It is nice that they can play some competitive cricket. I always encourage guys to be playing county cricket when it fits in because it is nice to be playing competitive cricket.
“It is probably the best preparation they can get to put their bodies through those sorts of workloads.