Fresh concerns over Hazlewood’s IPL availability after injury alongside the impending WTC final that sees Australia face SA.
Fresh concerns over injury puts Josh Hazlewood’s return in doubt if IPL resumes.
With the World Test Championship (WTC) final scheduled to start on June 11 at Lord’s, it is unclear if some players from South Africa and Australia would return for the rest of the season as the BCCI attempts to restart IPL 2025.
After cross-border tensions between India and Pakistan escalated, the IPL was postponed for a week on May 9. However, the league may soon resume after a ceasefire was announced on May 10 evening.
“The BCCI is closely monitoring the evolving situation and developments, and will take a call on IPL resumption after consulting all stakeholders and the concerned government authorities,” BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said. “In the next days, we will begin consultations with the franchises, broadcasters, sponsors and state associations slated to host the remaining matches… Given the importance of IPL at this juncture, it will also be prudent and necessary to take the nod of the government of India before finalising the time for its restart. BCCI will duly announce the date of IPL restart once the whole process is over in due course of time.”
Before the four playoff games, there are still 13 league games left in the IPL 2025 league phase, including the one that was called off in the middle of the first inning. On May 25, the final was supposed to take place in Kolkata.
Many foreign players and coaching staff departed India within the 24 hours following the IPL’s temporary suspension on Friday. If the BCCI decides to resume the event the following week, it will be difficult for all clubs to get them back.
Josh Hazlewood of Royal Challengers Bengaluru is uncertain about his return after missing the team’s previous home game against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on May 3 due to a shoulder ailment. Before the tournament was halted, he was a questionable starter for RCB’s next game against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on May 9. Even if the tournament hadn’t been halted, he might have missed the rest of the season.
After recovering from a calf injury and side strain that kept him out of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Hazlewood had earlier in the season stated that he had resumed a rehabilitation regimen during the 2025 Indian Premier League.
His injury doesn’t worry Cricket Australia (CA), and he is anticipated to be selected for the Test team that will train in the UK during the first week of June before the WTC final.
In light of the WTC final, Australia’s Test captain Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, and Travis Head will also need to decide whether to return to India once the IPL resumes. With just three league games left, Cummins and Head’s Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) team is already eliminated from the playoffs, while Starc’s squad, the Delhi Capitals (DC), is still in the running in fifth place.
With the exception of Mitchell Santner and Bevon Jacobs, nearly every New Zealand player has returned home from the IPL. Health Mills, the head of the New Zealand Cricket Players Association, told RNZ Sport that Santner and Jacobs, who play for the Mumbai Indians (MI), accepted a plea to remain.
On Sunday, a board meeting of Cricket South Africa will select which South African players would play in the remaining IPL, should it resumes. The board said that player safety and security could not be compromised, and as of just now, players had been granted NOCs until May 25.