Alex Hales to miss Notts Blast fixtures after signing LPL deal

Alex Hales will miss six of Nottinghamshire's 14 Vitality Blast group games after signing up for the Lanka Premier League, in the latest sign of a global T20 fixtures squeeze on the English summer.

Hales, a T20 World Cup-winner who retired from England duty last year, has long been a fixture on the franchise T20 circuit. He signed a contract extension for 2024 with Notts last month, having been linked with skipping the Blast to play Major League Cricket in the US.

The LPL will be held in a July 1-21 window this year, meaning it clashes with both the second half of the Blast group stage and MLC.

Hales was a mainstay of the side as Notts qualified for the Blast quarter-finals in 2023. He will be available if the club reach the knockout stages this summer, with the quarter-finals and Finals Day pushed back to September, following the staging of the Hundred.

"We knew that there may be a potential schedule clash for Alex this year - he is an in-demand player and we have to respect that he has earned the right to play in global competitions at this stage of his career," Nottinghamshire's director of cricket, Mick Newell, said.

"We were honest with each other when he signed his extension, albeit he was still awaiting offers from overseas leagues at that time.

"We know that he loves playing for Notts - it's been his home for his entire professional career, and he's has spoken multiple times about his enjoyment he has for playing at Trent Bridge.

"I have no doubt he'll offer us a lot during the time he has with us, both on and off the field, and we'll look forward to welcoming him back should we reach the quarter-final stages."

Counties have faced difficulty planning for the Blast due to a clash with the 2024 T20 World Cup in the Caribbean and USA, while the rise of leagues such as MLC and Canada's Global T20 - where Hales turned out last year - have added to logistical problems for the ECB's two-tiered approach to T20 cricket.