No agreement on England IPL deal

Modi does not want Pietersen to play just a handful of games

England have failed to reach agreement with India over the release of players for next year's Indian Premier League.

Giles Clarke and David Collier of the England and Wales Cricket Board had a two-day meeting with IPL chairman Lalit Modi in Mumbai.

They discussed the release of England players in return for Indian players being made available for the 2010 English Premier League.

The two sides will meet again in the next few weeks for further talks.

As things stand, England's centrally-contracted players will find it very difficult to play more than a handful of IPL matches a year because of a fixture clash.

The IPL's window is set for mid-April to the end of May, and the ECB is committed to two home Tests in May.

England's players have still not signed their contracts.

I am told the England players are quite eager to take part and, yes, they have had talks with a few of the franchises Lalit Modi IPL chairman and commissioner

Players' union chief Sean Morris told BBC Sport last week that "most England players have had discussions with IPL franchises".

But he added: "The IPL haven't announced their fixtures yet and we don't definitely know England's commitments."

Before the weekend meeting, Modi reiterated that he would not allow England players to play in only a handful of IPL matches.

"That does not work for us," he told BBC Sport. "They have to be available for a substantial period for them to be in the auction over the next two years. That's what the next contract period will be.

"I am told the England players are quite eager to take part, as one would expect any player anywhere in the world to be. And yes, they have had talks with a few of the franchises."

But it is understood Collier and Clarke are pushing for the IPL to be moved back a couple of weeks to accommodate England players, who have still not signed their central contracts because of the uncertainty they face.

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"The guys are keen to get the central contracts signed and we are 99% of the way there," Morris added.

"The Stanford and IPL windows are new things that have never been there before, it's a new workload. We don't know what the calendar is going to be for next year and are waiting to be told.

"Until then, we don't know what the guys are committing to in signing the contracts and we need that to be clarified. The players themselves are pretty comfortable about the situation."

The 2009 IPL player auction is due to take place in January.