English cricketer Jason Roy could leave his contract with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to play for the Los Angeles Knight Riders in the Major League Cricket (MLC) tournament in the US. Roy was part of the Kolkata Knight Riders team in the Indian Premier League earlier this year. While players with full central contracts are unlikely to be released for MLC, Roy holds an incremental deal that he may be able to terminate. Roy’s teammate Reece Topley is also reportedly considering playing in the MLC, pending the status of his shoulder surgery following an injury during IPL 2023.
ECB contracts run from October to September, and players who request release from an incremental contract will be charged around £20,000. MLC franchises have a salary cap of around £930,000 to cover 16-19 players, of whom they can select nine overseas players. The MLC tournament begins on 13 July in Texas and includes franchises from the Indian Premier League and Australia. Overseas signings include Marcus Stoinis, Quinton de Kock, Wanindu Hasaranga, Anrich Nortje and Glenn Phillips.
