Authorities of the new United Arab Emirates IPL-backed T20 league to be played in January have claimed they are working with Cricket Australia to avoid scheduling conflicts.
It has been the story which refuses to go away, and is likely to only get larger the closer to the tournaments get.
The Australian Big Bash League, which once had an exclusive window of the cricket calendar to attract star talent, is now swamped with South Africa, the United Arab Emirates and Bangladesh all holding leagues during January.
The South African and United Arab Emirates leagues are both backed by owners of IPL franchises, meaning the money they have is significantly greater than what is available to the Big Bash League, who have been forced to content for foreign talent.
Many players have already committed to the overseas leagues, while David Warner and Chris Lynn have also reportedly been in discussions, although Cricket Australia will look to block their moves abroad.
The head of the UAE's ILT20 league Mubashshir Usmani, who is also the general secretary of the Emirates Cricket Board has said that the only reason they are playing in January are due to the "optimal" playing conditions the nation provides at that time of year.
He said they are looking to minimise clashes with other boards in an attempt to bring the best possible talent into their own leagues.
"We are working with Cricket Australia, in fact we are in touch with all the relevant cricket boards, to minimise any major clashes," Usmani said.
"We do want Australian as well as any other available players to be involved with the league."
The push to minimise clashes will only be made stronger by an upcoming BCCI decision which is likely to allow Indian players to play in foreign leagues for the first time.
