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England pacer Saqib Mahmood declined an offer to play as a replacement in IPL and gave priority to Lancashire in the ongoing County Championship.

Saqib revealed that he was approached by the franchise during the recently concluded West Indies series.

"I turned down an IPL offer just to be here playing for Lancashire and try to push my red-ball credentials. I got an offer while we were out in the Caribbean and it was a decision I had to make," Mahmood was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo.

"I spoke to a couple of the guys around me and felt as though it was in my best interests at the moment to focus on red-ball cricket. Hopefully, that can highlight my ambition to play Test cricket and to give myself the best chance to do that by performing here for Lancashire."

Mahmood refused to reveal the team name and said that his decision had been informed in part by a discussion with Ben Stokes

"That was my choice," Mahmood said. "It was funny because it came from a conversation I had with Stokesy over breakfast one morning. I got talking to him about why he didn't go to the IPL and he said he wanted to prioritise red-ball cricket and be a part of the squad moving forward.

The 25-year-old made his Test debut for England against West Indies in March and shed six wickets at 22.83. He got the ball to reverse and showed his dexterity in no uncertain terms. He has represented England in 19 limited-overs matches as well.