Duo can be million-pound men

Lalit Modi, the commissioner of the Indian Premier League, believes Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff could earn as much as £1million in the cash-rich Twenty20 competition.

But he has repeated his warning that county sides risk being overlooked for the proposed Champions League.

Modi, one of the driving forces in the recent big-money expansion of the short form of the game, also welcomed the growing interest in a rival English Premier League and insists there is enough of a market for both events in the world game.

But it is his admission that the likes of Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Pietersen could earn a seven-figure contract with one of the eight IPL franchises which will win the ear of the England and Wales Cricket Board.

The ECB are known to treat seriously the possibility of their top international stars compromising their Test or domestic careers for the staggering sums on offer on the sub-continent - and such comments will not ease those concerns.

Hampshire skipper Dimitri Mascarenhas was the only English representative in the inaugural edition of the IPL but when asked about the possibility of a million-pound deals for more box-office names, Modi said: "Hypothetically yes, that is a possibility.

"We have salaries at the moment of around £750,000 and £800,000. It depends if a franchise thinks Kevin Pietersen or Andrew Flintoff is worth it," he told Radio Five Live's Sportsweek programme.

"From what I hear from the franchises, and from us as organisers, we would like representatives from all countries, but there may be timetabling issues.

"But we in no way depend on the English players, our league is up and running and we have sponsorship and funding for 10 years."