Former Australian opener Justin Langer has turned his back on the inaugural Twenty20 Indian Premier League, opting to honour a prior commitment to English county side Somerset. Langer fetched 218,000 US dollars from the Jaipur franchise in Wednesday's player auction, but The West Australian newspaper said here Saturday that he declined the offer.
In rejecting Jaipur's offer, Langer said he feared for the direction of world cricket, concerned that the riches of the IPL would change the priorities of some players. "Before the auction, I don't know if many people anticipated what an issue these massive player payments would become," Langer said.