The Indian Premier League has confirmed overseas players that withdraw from the T20 competition after being bought at the auction for reasons other than injury or a medical condition will be handed a two-year ban.

The ten IPL franchises recommended the rule change after being left disgruntled by several high-profile international stars pulling out of the tournament at the eleventh hour due to personal reasons.

Australian Test captain Pat Cummins bypassed the 2023 competition due to workload management, while leg-spinner Adam Zampa missed this year’s IPL for similar reasons.

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However, overseas players will be penalised with two-year bans if they make themselves unavailable for an IPL season for personal reasons after the BCCI formalised the new regulation over the weekend.

The rule change will help the IPL franchises protect their budgets while also making it more difficult for international stars to manage their calenders, especially for players from England and Australia.

“Any (overseas) player who registers for (an) auction and, after getting picked at the auction, makes himself unavailable before the start of the season will get banned from participating in the IPL/IPL auction for two seasons,” the new rule states.

Over the coming years, Australia’s cricket stars may be forced to sacrifice millions if they prioritise international commitments over the glamorous T20 league.

In 2027, for example, Australia is scheduled to tour India for a five-Test Border-Gavaskar Trophy campaign, play a 150th anniversary Test against England at the SCG, tour the United Kingdom for a five-Test Ashes tour, defend their World Cup title in South Africa and potentially contest another World Test Championship final.

Last year, Cummins and fellow Australian bowler Mitchell Starc shattered the record books by picking up IPL contracts worth $3.67 million and $4.43 million respectively.