IPL 2025 live updates - Starc and Ferreira opt out

As reported by ESPNcricinfo earlier, Mumbai Indians (MI) have roped in England duo of Jonny Bairstow, Richard Gleeson and Charith Asalanka of Sri Lanka as temporary replacements for Will Jacks, Ryan Rickelton and Corbin Bosch. Rickleton and Bosch will join South Africa for their preparations ahead of the World Test Championship (WTC) final while Jacks will be unavailable due to international duty, with England's ODI series against West Indies clashing with the rearranged knockout stage. They will leave after MI's last league game, against Punjab Kings on May 26.

An IPL statement said that Bairstow will join at a price of INR 5.25 crore while pacer Gleeson was picked at a reserve price of INR 1 crore and Asalanka for INR 75 lakhs.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have brought in Blessing Muzarabani, the Zimbabwe fast-bowling spearhead, as temporary replacement for Lungi Ngidi, who will leave to join South Africa for their preparations ahead of the World Test Championship (WTC) final. The replacement will be effective from May 26, the day before RCB's last league-phase game, against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) away in Lucknow.

An IPL statement said that Muzarabani would be joining RCB for INR 75 lakh.

Mustafizur Rahman has been "granted" a no-objection certificate to link up with Delhi Capitals (DC) for "the period from 18-24 May 2025," the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) said in a statement on Friday afternoon.

Maheesh Theekshana, the Sri Lanka fingerspinner, has returned to the Rajasthan Royals (RR) ranks for their last two league phase games.

RR are already out of contention for the playoffs, and sign off with games against Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Jaipur on May 18 and Chennai Super Kings (CSK), who are also out of the running, in Delhi on May 20.

With Theekshana confirming his return, RR are only without Jofra Archer and Nandre Burger for the remainder of their season. Shimron Hetmyer, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Kwena Maphaka and Wanindu Hasaranga are all back.

Mitchell Starc has decided against flying back to India to participate in the remainder of IPL 2025. AAP understands that a week after being part of the match that was abandoned in Dharamsala - and will be replayed - Starc has told his franchise that he wouldn't be finishing the league.

There is still no confirmation on whether Faf du Plessis would be returning to DC, while Tristan Stubbs has confirmed his return, but only for the rest of the league phase, after which he will be leaving for the WTC final.

Romario Shepherd and Sherfane Rutherford, both part of West Indies' ODI squad for the series against England, will stay back for the entire last leg of IPL 2025. Shepherd's RCB and Rutherford's GT are primed to qualify for the playoffs that start on May 29, the same day the ODI series kicks off.

A Cricket West Indies statement read:

RCB captain Rajat Patidar injured his finger in their fixture against CSK. He could have been touch-and-go had IPL 2025 not been suspended. The injury needed about 10 days to heel. And two days before the resumption of IPL, Patidar batted in RCB's nets.

Patidar's availability is crucial for RCB, who have lost Devdutt Padikkal to injury and will lose Jacob Bethell and Lungi Ngidi to national duties.

Jonny Bairstow is set to return to the IPL as Will Jacks' replacement at MI. Jacks will be exiting IPL 2025 for England duties after the end of the league stage. MI are well-placed to make the playoffs and will bank on Bairstow's past IPL experiences. Bairstow went unsold at the mega auction ahead of IPL 2025 but has played for SRH and PBKS in the past. He will be a temporary replacement, which means he cannot be retained for IPL 2026 as per the tweaked retention rules.

Mayank Yadav has been ruled out of the last leg of IPL 2025 after picking up another back injury. He had only returned to competitive cricket in April after a near-six-month layoff due to back and toe injuries. New Zealand fast bowler Will O'Rourke, who has played five T20Is, is his replacement at LSG.

PBKS have brought in Kyle Jamieson as a replacement for the injured Lockie Ferguson. Ferguson played three matches this season and hobbled off after bowling two balls in his fourth outing.

After practising at GMR's private ground Aerocity on Wednesday, the Delhi Capitals (DC) team practised at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Thursday evening. Apart from Kuldeep Yadav, all the major Indian players were present in this practice session. Kuldeep had, however, practised at the GMR ground on Saturday. No foreign player other than Sri Lanka fast bowler Dushmantha Chameera was present in this practice session. Assistant coach Matthew Mott, fielding coach Anton Roux and physio Patrick Farhat were present with the team.

KL Rahul, Karun Nair were the first two players to arrive. After them, Abhishek Porel, Sameer Rizvi, Axar Patel and Ashutosh Sharma also took part. The rest of the team played football and later got into some fielding practice.

There are eight South Africa players in the IPL who will be part of the WTC final next month. They are set to miss the IPL playoffs in order to head home and then fly to the UK with the rest of the Test squad on May 30.

Kagiso Rabada (GT), Aiden Markram (LSG), Marco Jansen (PBKS), Tristan Stubbs (DC), Lungi Ngidi (RCB), Wiaan Mulder (SRH), Ryan Rickelton and Corbin Bosch (both MI) will all head back to South Africa after the league stage ends. GT and RCB are well-placed to qualify for the playoffs with PBKS, MI and DC among those tussling for the fourth spot.

Aiden Markram is among the overseas players expected to rejoin the Lucknow Super Giants squad by May 18. The others, Mitchell Marsh, Matthew Breetzke, David Miller, Nicholas Pooran and Shamar Joseph, are also expected to join the squad in the next three days. Out of the bunch, Markram is the only player who will leave post the league phase in case LSG qualify for the playoffs.

LSG play their first game on May 19 against Sunrisers Hyderabad before playing Gujarat Titans on May 22 and then rounding up their league phase against RCB at home.

Romario Shepherd, Liam Livingstone and Tim David, Jacob Bethell, Lungi Ngidi and Phil Salt have all rejoined the RCB squad.

Bethell will be available for just two matches and is expected to return to England after RCB's home game against SRH. The extent of Shepherd's availability remains uncertain as he has been named in West Indies' ODI squads for both the Ireland (May 21-25) and England (starting May 29) series. Livingstone is not part of England's white-ball squads and is expected to be available for the playoffs, so are Salt and David.

Sri Lanka wicketkeeper-batter Kusal Mendis will replace Jos Buttler for the IPL 2025 playoffs, Gujarat Titans have confirmed. Buttler will play GT’s last three league matches before returning to the UK for England’s white-ball series against West Indies starting May 30. Mendis, previously with Quetta Gladiators in the PSL, won’t return to Pakistan for the tournament’s final stages.

South Africa batter Tristan Stubbs is expected to rejoin Delhi Capitals as the season resumes on May 17. It, however, remains unclear by when he will be available for the franchise. Stubbs is part of South Africa's squad for the World Test Championship (WTC) final. The WTC final-bound South Africa players are likely to leave the IPL by May 25. In that case, he will miss the playoffs, should DC qualify.

Moeen Ali has opted out of the remainder of IPL 2025 due to personal reasons. KKR are also awaiting an update from Rovman Powell, who is nursing an unspecified injury that may hamper his participation. Powell had been in Dubai along with the rest of KKR’s West Indies contingent while being in close consultation with the medical staff. ESPNcricinfo understands the franchise is looking at signing at least one short-term replacement.

All other overseas players, including Quinton de Kock and Spencer Johnson, whose availability had been a slight doubt, have arrived in Bengaluru. Rahmanullah Gurbaz, the Afghanistan wicketkeeper-batter, was the last of their confirmed overseas signings to arrive in Bengaluru. KKR are set to train at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Thursday and Friday in the run-up to the season’s resumption on Saturday.

Jofra Archer is set to miss the last two matches of Rajasthan Royals (RR) as he recovers from the thumb injury he picked up during the one-run defeat against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on May 4. Sri Lanka spinner Maheesh Theekshana is the other overseas injury suspect as he is recovering from a niggle.

Among the overseas names who are set to join RR in Jaipur on Thursday are Shimron Hetmyer and Wanindu Hasaranga. Afghanistan fast bowler Fazalhaq Farooqi will join by Wednesday evening. That will take RR’s overseas players count to five with the young South African pair of Kwena Maphaka and Lhuan-dre Pretorius already in Jaipur.

Another overseas name that will not return to the IPL is RR’s bowling coach Shane Bond. It is learned he has just landed in New Zealand.

RR had their first training session in Jaipur on Wednesday with the leadership group comprising head coach Rahul Dravid, captain Sanju Samson and his deputy Riyan Parag attending. Samson is still doing his rehab after walking out retired hurt with a side strain in the thriller against Delhi Capitals (DC) on April 16, which RR lost in the Super Over. Since then, Parag has been leading RR, who are out of playoffs race, and are currently ninth on the points table with just three wins from 12 matches.

DC announced Mustafizur Rahman as a replacement for Jake Fraser-McGurk but the Bangladesh Cricket Board hasn't yet been approached for an NOC - either by the player or by the IPL. Mustafizur is part of Bangladesh's squad that will play a total of seven T20Is against UAE and Pakistan over the next few days. Those assignments clash with the rescheduled IPL.

It is already clear that the IPL's tweaked retention rules would not allow DC to retain the Bangladesh fast bowler for IPL 2026. With 13 points in 11 matches, DC still have a chance of finishing in the top four and making the playoffs. Whether Mustafizur plays a third season in the IPL for them remains to be seen.

South Africa fast bowler Marco Jansen has agreed to rejoin Punjab Kings (PBKS) for the rescheduled IPL 2025. It is learnt that Jansen has told the PBKS management he will reach Jaipur, where the squad will start training this week, ahead of their match against Rajasthan Royals (RR) on May 18.

Jansen becomes the first WTC-final-bound South Africa player to confirm his return to the IPL. South Africa players who are part of the WTC final in June will be available only till May 25 - negotiations around that still ongoing between Cricket South Africa and the BCCI - the original finish date of the IPL before it was rescheduled because of cross-border tensions between India and Pakistan. CSA expects its WTC final squad to return to South Africa by May 26 before they fly to the UK on May 30. The WTC final, in which South Africa meet Australia, starts on June 11 at Lord's.

It is understood that PBKS are still having discussions with Jansen on how long he will be able to stretch his availability in the IPL. The bowling allrounder has been a key player in PBKS being among the favourites to make the IPL 2025 playoffs. Shreyas Iyer’s team is third on the points table with 15 points after 11 matches and have three more league matches to go. Two more wins will guarantee them a playoffs slot, but they are sweating on the availability of a set of overseas players that includes Jansen and the Australian pair of Jos Inglis and Marcus Stoinis.

The franchise is understood to still be waiting for clarity from Inglis and Stoinis, who returned together to Australia along with allrounder Aaron Hardie and fast bowler Xavier Bartlett a day after the IPL was suspended. On Tuesday, Bartlett, along with fellow Australian Mitchell Owen, who replaced Glenn Maxwell in the PBKS squad, and Afghanistan allrounder Azmatullah Omarzai were confirmed to be returning to the IPL.

PBKS play their first game upon resumption on May 18 when they take on Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur.

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) resumed their training on Wednesday for the first time since the suspension of IPL 2025. It is learnt that no overseas players have rejoined the franchise yet. Nicholas Pooran, Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Shamar Joseph and Mathew Breetzke are the overseas players in the LSG squad.

Of that group, LSG will be especially concerned by the availability of Markram and Joseph; the South Africa batter is part of his national squad for the WTC final while the latter is part of the West Indies ODI squad, which will play a three-match series against England from May 29.

LSG captain Rishabh Pant, too, was absent from their training but is expected to rejoin the squad by Thursday. All the coaching staff, though, including Zaheer Khan, Justin Langer, Lance Klusener, Vijay Dahiya and Rajat Bhatia, have rejoined as LSG get ready to play their first match after resumption, a home game on May 19 against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH).

Despite losing three matches in a row including defeats in four of their last five matches, LSG remain in contention for the playoffs, and will hope to win their three remaining matches.

Delhi Capitals (DC) have signed Bangladesh fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman as a replacement for Australian batter Jake Fraser-McGurk, who pulled out of IPL 2025 after the league was suspended for a week amid cross-border India-Pakistan tensions.

Mustafizur will join DC for INR 6 crore.

Mustafizur has played 57 games in the IPL, taking 61 wickets. Ten of those games came for DC across the 2022 and 2023 seasons.

According to the latest IPL rules, teams can sign temporary replacement players for the final stages of the rearranged 2025 season, but those players won't be eligible for retention ahead of the next auction.

South Africa wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock is set to rejoin Kolkata Knight Riders' squad in Bengaluru on Thursday, two days ahead of their must-win fixture against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). There had been some uncertainty surrounding de Kock's return until Tuesday evening. He has since confirmed his availability for the last leg of the tournament that will run from May 17 to June 3.

ESPNcricinfo understands most of KKR's overseas players, including Australia left-arm seamer Spencer Johnson whose return had been uncertain until Tuesday, have confirmed their availability as IPL 2025 is set to resume following a week's suspension. They're awaiting a confirmation from England allrounder Moeen Ali.

Australian batter Jake Fraser-McGurk is set to become the first overseas name to be a confirmed pullout from the remainder of IPL 2025, which will restart on May 17 after it was suspended for a week. Fraser-McGurk, who was bought by Delhi Capitals (DC) at the mega auction for INR 9 crore (US$ 1.07 million approx.) is understood to have informed the franchise about not rejoining the squad.

From being indispensable towards the end of IPL 2024, Fraser-McGurk became dispensable for DC by the halfway mark this season after poor returns with the bat.

Despite that, the development won't help DC, who remain in contention for the playoffs, as it is understood that they are still waiting for confirmations from several of their first XI overseas players.

That list includes Australian left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Starc and the South African pair of Faf du Plessis and Tristan Stubbs.

Mumbai Indians fast bowler Trent Boult is understood to have decided to return to play the remainder of IPL 2025. It is a shot in the arm for MI who have bounced back from a weak start to emerge as a strong contender for play-offs. Boult is the leading wicket-taker for MI and the joint-fourth in the tournament with 18 wickets at an economy of 8.49.

MI are one of the franchises who potentially could be severely impacted due to the rescheduling of the IPL after it was suspended for a week on May 10. The five-time champions are still waiting on the availability of three of their first-choice overseas players: the South African pair of Ryan Rickleton and Corbin Bosch and England batter Will Jacks.

All three of Jos Buttler, Jacob Bethell and Will Jacks are part of England's white-ball squads for the home series against West Indies. The ODI series starts on May 29 and the trio is likely to miss the playoffs of IPL 2025 that also start on May 29. Their teams - GT, RCB and MI - are well placed to finish in the top four and make the playoffs.

"We're keen to support the IPL and the BCCI in getting the schedule up and running, and to facilitate players' return should they choose to go back," an ECB spokesperson said. "We'll continue to work closely with the BCCI and the IPL as the situation develops."

South Africa have named their World Test Championship (WTC) final squad, which includes eight IPL players: Kagiso Rabada (GT), Lungi Ngidi (RCB), Tristan Stubbs (DC), Aiden Markram (LSG), Ryan Rickelton, Corbin Bosch (both MI), Marco Jansen (PBKS) and Wiaan Mulder (SRH).

Cricket South Africa (CSA) has not officially confirmed whether any of their players will return to the IPL and how long the WTC-bound players will be available for at the tournament, but has indicated that the Test squad will assemble in England on May 31. Initially, all South African players' NOCs were to run until May 25, the original date of IPL final. The IPL has since been extended until June 3, when South Africa are due to begin a four-day warm-up match against Zimbabwe at Arundel. The non-IPL players will leave South Africa on May 30.

"It is an individual decision, obviously, to return or to play or continue. But one thing we've made it clear, and we are finalising that with IPL and BCCI, is sticking to our original plan when it comes to the WTC preparations. Obviously, with May 26 being the latest for the Test guys to come back,” Enoch Nkwe, CSA’s director of national teams, said.

Jos Buttler (GT), Jacob Bethell (RCB) and Will Jacks (MI) are the players in focus. They have been named in England's ODI squad for the three-match series against West Indies that starts on May 29.

As per the revised IPL 2025 schedule, the league stage is set to run until May 27 followed by the playoffs. All of GT, RCB and MI are in the top four of the points table, as things stand, and are well-placed to qualify for the playoffs.

“No Objection Certificates have been granted based on the original IPL dates, so we’ll need to review any potential extensions, particularly in relation to any clash with the final white-ball squad," an England Cricket Board spokesperson said on Tuesday.

There are doubts over Josh Hazlewood’s availability for the remainder of IPL 2025, considering a shoulder niggle kept him out of RCB’s last match before the tournament was suspended. While Hazlewood was named in the Australia squad for the WTC final, Cricket Australia (CA) did not provide any direct update on whether he would travel back for the IPL.

It is understood that the franchise is in talks with all the overseas players and are yet to get confirmations on their availability. RCB have been the form team of IPL 2025, and the overseas pair of Hazlewood and Tim David have played a significant role in the victories.

RCB's overseas players list: Tim David, Phil Salt, Jacob Bethell, Liam Livingstone, Romario Shepherd, Josh Hazlewood, Lungi Ngidi, Nuwan Thushara,

Elsewhere, Afghanistan spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman will be available for Mumbai Indians (MI) for their last three games. Mujeeb, who has played just one match so far this season, arrived in Mumbai early on Tuesday from Kabul.

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) will welcome back assistant coach Lance Klusener and top-order batter Matthew Breetzke, who will both arrive in New Delhi on Tuesday evening and fly onwards to Lucknow later at night. Meanwhile, Dushmantha Chameera is set to rejoin Delhi Capitals (DC).

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) are regrouping in Delhi from May 17 as the IPL 2025 resumes. It is learned that CSK management has entrusted head coach Stephen Fleming to decide on which overseas players to recall, considering the five-time champions are out of the playoffs race.

Among those available from their overseas contingent are Afghanistan left-arm wristspinner Noor Ahmad and Sri Lanka's Matheesha Pathirana. ESPNcricinfo understands that Noor had stayed back in Chennai to complete his USA visa formalities ahead of next month's Major League Cricket (MLC) season in the USA, where he'll represent the Texas Super Kings (TSK).

Meanwhile, it’s unclear if Rachin Ravindra and Devon Conway will return. The New Zealand duo is currently at home in Wellington and are awaiting clarity on their travel plans from the franchise. As of Tuesday, they’d been asked to wait for a further update.

CSK's overseas players: Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, Sam Curran, Dewald Brevis, Jamie Overton, Nathan Ellis, Noor Ahmad, Matheesha Pathirana

Three of Punjab Kings' (PBKS) overseas players - Xavier Bartlett, Azmatullah Omarzai and Mitchell Owen - have confirmed to the franchise of their return to the IPL post resumption. PBKS will resume training from Thursday in Jaipur, their new temporary home base.

Despite all the players returning home, most of PBKS' overseas coaching staff did not go back. This includes head coach Ricky Ponting along with the pair of assistant coaches Brad Haddin and James Hopes. The franchise has asked all players and support staff to reassemble in the next two days.

PBKS overseas players list: Josh Inglis, Mitchell Owen, Aaron Hardie, Azmatullah Omarzai, Marco Jansen, Marcus Stoinis, Xavier Bartlett

Most of Kolkata Knight Riders' (KKR) overseas players are expected to arrive in Bengaluru between Wednesday night and Thursday morning. The West Indian contingent of Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, and Rovman Powell, along with team mentor Dwayne Bravo, have been in transit in Dubai for the past three days. Their journey back to the Caribbean was paused amid speculation over IPL 2025 resuming.

Afghanistan’s Rahmanullah Gurbaz, currently in Kabul, will link up with the West Indian contingent in Dubai before flying into India, while South Africa fast bowler Anrich Nortje will join the squad in Bengaluru from the Maldives, where he’s been on holiday.

Geographically, Moeen Ali and Spencer Johnson are the farthest - in the UK and Australia, respectively and an update on their availability is awaited; indications are they will return. Meanwhile, KKR's Indian players and support staff are all expected to arrive at Bengaluru in batches from Wednesday.

KKR overseas players list Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Quinton de Kock, Rovman Powell, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Moeen Ali, Spencer Johnson, Anrich Nortje

The Australian pair of Pat Cummins and Travis Head are set to return to rejoin Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH).

It is understood that Cummins, who is the SRH captain and Head, indicated to the franchise that they would rejoin. Cummins’ manager, Neil Maxwell, too, hinted that Cummins was heading to the IPL. “Pat has a responsibility as captain of the franchise and is looking at returning,” Maxwell told News Corp on Tuesday.

Overseas players list: Travis Head, Pat Cummins, Heinrich Klaasen, Kamindu Mendis, Wiaan Mulder, Eshan Malinga

Overseas players list: Jos Buttler, Sherfane Rutherford, Rashid Khan, Karim Janat, Dasun Shanaka, Gerald Coetzee, Kagiso Rabada

Jos Buttler and Gerald Coetzee, the two Gujarat Titans (GT) overseas players who had left India last week, will join the franchise on Wednesday. They were the only two GT players who had returned home as soon as the IPL was suspended.

GT are currently leading the IPL 2025 points table with 16 points and are a step away from sealing a playoffs spot. Buttler is GT's third-highest run-getter of the season (and fifth overall) with 500 runs in 11 innings at an average of 71.42 and a strike rate of 163.93. Coetzee, on the other hand, played GT's last two games before the season was suspended.

Earlier on May 13, Cricket Australia (CA) released a statement about the resumption of IPL 2025, saying: “Following the announcement that the IPL will resume on Saturday, Cricket Australia will support players in their individual decisions whether to return to India or not.

“Team management will work through preparation implications for the World Test Championship final for those players who choose to play in the remaining IPL matches. We are maintaining communication with the Australian government and BCCI around security arrangements and safety.”

Meanwhile, according to a report in NZ Herald, New Zealand Cricket(NZC) has communicated to the players, coaches, and commentators who left India last weekend that they can choose whether they return or not, after the league’s resumption was confirmed.