IPL leaves a mark on World Twenty20

London:

Like it or not, the cash-lucrative Indian Premier League can't be ignored as it is proving both a boon and curse for cricketers taking part in the World Twenty20 here.

Some like West Indian Dwayne Bravo and Sri Lanka's Tillekeratne Dilshan credit their success to the IPL, where Indian tycoons and Bollywood stars dole out millions to buy the best players for their franchises.

Ironically, one team that will view the latest edition of the IPL held in South Africa just prior to the T20 Worlds with mixed feelings are India.

The defending champions were deprived of the services of vice-captain and swashbuckling opener Virender Sehwag, who suffered a shoulder injury while leading the Delhi Daredevils.

England lost influential all-rounder Andrew Flintoff after he was injured during his short sojourn with Chennai Super Kings, who bought him for a joint-record salary of 1.55 million dollars a year.

New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori did not take part in the World Twenty20 league phase or the first Super Eights match against Ireland due to a shoulder injury at the IPL.

Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, a 1.5 million-dollar signee with the Chennai team, refused to blame the IPL for Sehwag's absence.

"Injuries are part of a sportsman's life," he said. "They can happen anytime, anywhere. It's not right to blame the IPL for that."

The fat pay-packets go a long way in soothing tired limbs and jaded minds caused by the gruelling travel and helter-skelter cricket of the five-week IPL.

Players, however, swear by the Indian tournament for raising their own game to a new level.

Bravo, hero of West Indies' win over India at Lord's on Friday where he picked up four wickets and then scored an unbeaten 66, said he benefitted from skills picked in the IPL.

The all-rounder came into the tournament after a second year with Sachin Tendulkar's Mumbai Indians in the IPL, having missed West Indies' unsuccessful tour of England due to an ankle injury.

"This was my second stint in the IPL," said Bravo. "I gained a lot of experience both times. Sharing the same dressing room with some of the best players in the world, you've got to learn a lot.

"I think that's what I did."

Dilshan, who has scored two half-centuries and 46 not out in Sri Lanka's three matches so far, says his trademade scoop shot over the wicket-keeper's head was born in the IPL.

"The first time I played that shot was two months ago in the IPL," the opener said. "I have confidence now and I trust myself that I can play that shot.

"I could play a paddle shot against a yorker and then if the ball is a good length, the ball can go behind the wicket-keeper."

Kumar Sangakkara, leading Sri Lanka for the first time in a major series after taking over from Mahela Jayawardene, says the IPL experience has done his players a lot of good.

"At the last count there were 13 of our players in the IPL and hopefully there will be a lot more in the next few years," Sangakkara told AFP.

"Playing against the best can only be a good thing. It's not about the money. It's about testing your skills against the game's leading cricketers and learning from them.

"It makes you a better human being and definitely a better cricketer."

The next edition of the IPL takes place in March-April next year, a month before the next World Twenty20 in the Caribbean, just like this year.