England batsman Liam Livingstone has put his Test recall over playing in the Indian Premier League as he has withdrawn from the upcoming season of the T20 league. Instead, he will play county cricket for Lancashire in a bid to earn a Test recall. He is still uncapped in the longest format but was a part of the two Tests against New Zealand in 2018, which were played after England’s long stay in Australia for Ashes 2017/18.
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While his bid to earn a Test recall will start next year, Livingstone has already been doing his bit to be back in the T20I squad. He has established himself as one of the best T20I players and is currently playing for Cape Town Blitz in the Mzansi Super League.
Following that, he will play for Perth Scorchers in the Big Bash League and will also play in Pakistan Super League – if he gets picked in the draft. The 26-year-old is also a part of Birmingham Phoenix in The Hundred. Livingstone would have been one of the top picks in the IPL auction but with the fixtures of the T20 tournament and county cricket overlapping, he has withdrawn.
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Last year, he was picked by Rajasthan Royals at his base price of Rs 50 Lakh and scored 71 runs in four matches that he played. He was one of the eleven players that the franchise decided to release ahead of IPL 2020 auction.
Livingstone has played two T20Is so far, both against South Africa in 2017. His first-class numbers are fine. In 54 first-class matches, he has scored 2955 runs at 41.61 wth seven centuries and 15 half-centuries.
Livingstone has followed the footsteps of Mitchell Marsh, who had also withdrawn from the T20 league last year to play county cricket. He later earned a recall to the Test side and was also a part of Ashes 2019.
The all-rounder shone with a seven-fer in the only Test he played. Marsh would have retained his place in the squad for upcoming Pakistan Tests but has been ruled out due to hand injury that he suffered after punching a wall.