Michael Vaughan wants Tom Banton to give up on his IPL deal

Former England skipper Michael Vaughan has made an appeal to the England Cricket Board to talk to young batting sensation Tom Banton and advise him to give up on his Indian Premier League (IPL) contract and play the upcoming County season as there are still few places up for grabs in the Test team.

Tom Banton has been a force to be reckoned with in recent times and impressed everyone with his batting skills in the previous country season. His ongoing stint in the Big Bash League had also garnered universal acclaim.

However, Vaughan believes that Banton should concentrate more on national duties rather than playing in the Indian Premier League. He believes Banton can be the next big thing for England across all formats.

Vaughan further stated that if he was in charge, he would have definitely told Banton to leave IPL and play for Somerset for the first few weeks of the County season.

“If I were in charge I would be on the phone this week to Tom Banton telling him to give up his IPL deal and play the first few weeks of the county season for Somerset because there is a slot available at No 6 in the Test side,” Vaughan said.

Michael Vaughan said these things because he knows that Banton would not be able to get many matches in the tournament as Kolkata Knight Riders can only play four overseas in the playing XI. So, he feels that it is better for him to play the county to remain in touch.

“I have seen enough of Banton to know he is a superstar in the making. I’m not sure a stint in the IPL right now, when he might not get a lot of game time, is what he needs at this stage of his career,” added Michael Vaughan.

He concluded by saying that he has a lot of time to play IPL in the future but right now, he has to prove himself in four-day cricket to make a cut into the England team.

Banton has been playing really well in the BBL. He scored the second-fastest half-century in the tournament’s history and struck 5 sixes in an over.

KKR will be looking forward to having this exciting talent in their playing XI.