Stokes to skip IPL but Anderson & Archer enter auction

Captain Ben Stokes has opted to skip next year's Indian Premier League but former England bowler James Anderson has registered for the upcoming auction.

Stokes' name is not among the 52 Englishman who have signed up for the auction, which will be held on 24 and 25 November.

It means the 33-year-old will also be unavailable for the 2026 competition under new rules announced by the IPL last month.

But England's leading wicket-taker Anderson, 42, who retired from international duty in July, has put his name forward, as has pace bowler Jofra Archer.

Anderson has not played since his final Test against West Indies at Lord's and has not played a T20 since 2014.

He has never played in a global T20 franchise league.

Archer's decision is interesting, given hopes he could return to Test cricket next summer.

Named the IPL's most valuable player in 2020, the 29-year-old has made his comeback from a series of back and elbow injuries this year in white-ball cricket, but it is still hoped he could feature against India next summer and in the 2025-26 Ashes in Australia.

The 2025 IPL will also clash with the early rounds of the County Championship, potentially preventing Archer from proving his fitness in the longer format.

The IPL brought in a new rule this year that meant overseas players signed by franchises who later pull out will be banned from the competition for two years.

The dates for the 2025 IPL have not been confirmed, but this year it ran from 22 March to 26 May.

After the Champions Trophy concludes in early March, England do not play again until a four-day Test against Zimbabwe on 22 May.

The IPL said 1,574 players have signed up for the auction, although it has not released a list of names.

Franchises will shortlist players they are interested in over the coming weeks with a full list published closer to the auction.

No England players were retained by their franchises prior to the auction, with England white-ball captain Jos Buttler among those released.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has not commented on which centrally-contracted players have signed up for the auction.

Buttler joined England's training session in Barbados on Monday as he targets a return from a calf injury in the T20 series against West Indies, which starts on Saturday.

The 34-year-old has not played since the T20 World Cup in June and has confirmed he will not return as wicketkeeper in the Caribbean, with Phil Salt taking the gloves.

Buttler has kept in 106 of his past 108 T20s for England, but will be replaced as part of the refresh of the white-ball sides following failed defences of their two world titles.

"Maybe it will get a little bit more out of him at mid-off, having an opportunity to chat to the bowlers," said Salt.

"The only thing that keeping takes away from you is the advantage of being there with the bowlers at the top of their marks all the time.

"Sometimes you can can get stuck in a bit of a position where the only times you're running up to a bowler is when things aren't going to plan and you're running up to reaffirm positive things."