A handful of leading Australians, including middle-order batsman Michael Clarke and strike bowler Mitchell Johnson, have turned down offers to play in the lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL) to focus on their international careers.
Australia's IPL agent, Neil Maxwell, released a brief statement on Tuesday confirming 13 Australians had signed up for the Twenty20 tournament starting in April.
The list included current skipper Ricky Ponting, soon to be retired vice-captain Adam Gilchrist and the trio of Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath and Justin Langer, who all retired over a year ago.
Most of Australia's one-day squad signed on the dotted line ahead of this week's player "auction" but there were some notable absentees, including Clarke, Johnson, Brad Haddin, Stuart Clark and Jason Gillespie.
The Australians were only cleared to play in the tournament this week after their national body reached an agreement with IPL over a sponsorship dispute which had threatened their participation. Ponting had said he feared players would turn their backs on their national teams if they were prevented from joining the IPL.
He called on the International Cricket Council (ICC) to create a separate window for the tournament to avoid a clash with regular international tours.
AUSTRALIAN PLAYERS WHO HAVE SIGNED FOR IPL:
Brett Lee, David Hussey, Mike Hussey, Matthew Hayden, Andrew Symonds, Adam Gilchrist, Ricky Ponting, Nathan Bracken, Cameron White, Simon Katich, Shane Warne, Justin Langer, Glenn McGrath.
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