The Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises weren’t pleased with foreign players signing up for just the mini-auction to earn big bucks or pulling out of the tournament for non-injury reasons. They pushed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to take action against defaulters. Promptly, the board banned players who skipped the mega auction or pulled out with invalid reasons.
But the IPL franchises may not stop there. In the IPL 2026 season, other cricket boards, Cricket Australia (CA) and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), have shown no trust in the franchises. They’ve called their centrally contracted players back for something as simple as scans. It’s clear they don’t trust the franchises.
Cricket boards vs IPL franchises
The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) were miffed that Cameron Green wasn’t bowling in the early stages of the tournament. Cooper Connolly wasn’t allowed to bowl. Pat Cummins joined the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) but flew back and didn’t join until he was cleared by CA. Similarly, Phil Salt has returned to England after a finger injury, with no confirmation of his return.
At some point, the franchises will push back, and we might see it sooner rather than later. SRH captain Cummins missed 7 matches. He’s someone whom they have paid INR 20.50 crore, which is 17% of their total purse. Perhaps he could’ve played earlier, but CA wouldn’t let him.
Pat Cummins wasn’t available for the first half of IPL 2026 and Ishan Kishan was named SRH’s interim captain | Image Credit: MB Media Solutions/ Alamy Live NewsMitchell Starc didn’t join the Delhi Capitals (DC) until 1 month after the tournament commenced. He missed 8 matches. By then, DC was already struggling. Since his return, Starc has taken the most wickets for them, and DC have won 3 out of 5 matches.
Time for BCCI to change policy?
DC is virtually out of IPL 2026. After winning their last home game, DC head coach Hemang Badani expressed disappointment that their best bowler, at least on paper, wasn’t available for the majority of the season. There’s no guarantee DC would’ve qualified for the playoffs, but his availability would’ve surely helped.
“Ideally, I would want my players to be available to me from day one. Starc is probably one of my biggest players in my squad, and we’ve invested in him, and we know that he’s a match-winner. But if there are certain things which are above my pay grade and certain things that are decided by associations and governing bodies, there’s very little that we can do,” he told reporters in Delhi.
Badani has hinted at urging the BCCI to find a solution to the problem. Paying someone crores and then them not turning up because of their cricket board is not something IPL franchises will want. That specific player might face the brunt of it as well, with franchises deciding against bidding for them at the auction, which could be the case with Wanindu Hasaranga and Nuwan Thushara, who aren’t big names like Starc, Cummins, or Josh Hazlewood.
“Because if Cricket Australia does not release him, which was also the case with Josh Hazlewood and also the case with Pat Cummins, there’s little a coach or any franchise can do about that. Hopefully, we have a solution to it in the future,” Badani added.
It won’t be a shocker if this issue is on the agenda at the next BCCI Annual General Meeting (AGM). If Jasprit Bumrah and Varun Chakaravarthy can play for their respective franchises while carrying a niggle or injury, surely the same can happen for foreign players.
Should IPL franchises nudge BCCI for stricter foreign player availability measures after Mitchell Starc episode Inside Sport India.
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