The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has decided to keep quiet about the participation of foreign players in the upcoming matches of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, which is scheduled to resume on May 17.
This follows the suspension of the tournament for a week after tensions between India and Pakistan escalated.
Responsibility for informing people of the comeback of overseas players is now upon individual franchises. Some foreign players had already come back to their countries after India suspended the tournament on May 9 due to Pakistan's missile and drone strikes close to its border. The defense systems in India intercepted these attacks successfully, but the BCCI still thought it was appropriate to suspend competition for a little while as an act of safety.
The IPL 2025 season will resume at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, with Royal Challengers Bengaluru taking on Kolkata Knight Riders. The last match is on June 3. In response to the question about players turning up for the tournament, a BCCI official stated to IANS, "We are not in a position to comment right now. The franchises are better placed to give updates on who is arriving and who is not."
Gujarat Titans, however, are likely to have two important overseas players — England's Jos Buttler and South Africa's Gerald Coetzee — return by Wednesday. They were the sole foreign players from the GT squad to have left India after the suspension, ESPNcricinfo reports. The others — Rashid Khan, Sherfane Rutherford, Kagiso Rabada, and Karim Janat — remained with the team.
Sunrisers Hyderabad are also gearing up for the return of Australian stars Travis Head and Pat Cummins before the restart of the league. Both players have been said to have confirmed their plans to return to the team, even after being selected in Australia's Test team for the upcoming World Test Championship final against South Africa, which begins June 11 at Lord's. Since SRH have already been ruled out of playoff contention, their return was also in doubt. But a declaration of ceasefire on May 11 changed the dynamics. "Pat has a duty as captain of the franchise and is considering coming back," Cummins' manager Neil Maxwell said to News Corp on Tuesday.
Kolkata Knight Riders are also anticipating the arrival of their overseas contingent between Wednesday and Thursday in Bengaluru.
After the league was suspended in light of the India-Pakistan conflict, many Australian players had already returned home. However, with tensions now de-escalating following the ceasefire, many players, coaches, and commentators from Australia are rethinking whether to return to India for the balance of the tournament.
Cricket Australia clarified that it is a choice an individual must make. "Cricket Australia will assist players in making their own decisions on returning to India or not returning. We are keeping up with the Australian Government and BCCI regarding security arrangements and safety," the board said on Tuesday.
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