Following numerous cases being reported across different franchises, the BCCI had to suspend the IPL 2021 on 4th May 2021. Recently, the Board had confirmed that the remainder of the tournament will be scheduled during the September-October window. However, the unavailability of foreign players would be the biggest concern for the franchises during the second phase of the tournament.
The players from England won’t be participating in the tournament if the statement from ECB director Ashley Giles is to be believed. The former England cricketer has categorically stated that the board won’t allow its players to participate in the second phase.
Players associated with the Caribbean Premier League too are doubtful for the IPL 2021 second phase. With the league ending on 18th September, the players are likely to miss most parts of IPL due to Covid protocols. The BCCI has requested the West Indies Cricket Board to prepone the tournament by 7-10 days. However, the latter is yet to reply on the matter. Nonetheless, with international assignments also taking place during that time, it is unlikely that CPL 2021 would get preponed.
Earlier, the Bangladesh Cricket Board had also stated that they won’t allow its players to participate in the remainder of the tournament. Australia are yet to confirm their stand on the same. Reports, however, have suggested that the players might miss the tournament due to their busy cricket calendar.
On that note, here’s a look at the team-wise list of players who might miss the second phase of IPL 2021 in the UAE:
1. Chennai Super Kings:
Contrary to last year, Chennai Super Kings enjoyed a great outing in the first half of IPL 2021. With 5 wins in 7 games, Dhoni and Co. are currently sitting at second position in the points table. However, given that the English players won’t be available during the second phase, CSK camp would be a bit tensed.
Following are the international players who won’t be participating in the remainder of IPL 2021:
Sam Curran, Moeen Ali, Jason Behrendorff, Mitchell Santner, Dwayne Bravo
2. Delhi Capitals:
Delhi Capitals continued their impressive run in IPL 2021. Under the leadership of a new captain in Rishabh Pant, Delhi received plaudits for the way they performed in the first phase. They won 6 out of 8 games so far and have almost sealed their place for the qualifiers.
The Capitals are currently leading the points table with 12 points to their name. They will be in a soup if Shreyas Iyer regains fitness and return for the second leg of IPL 2021. As things look, Iyer is likely to resume leadership duties from Pant.
Following are the players from DC who are likely to miss the remainder of IPL 2021:
Steve Smith, Marcus Stoinis, Shimron Hetmyer, Tom Curran, Sam Billings
3. Royal Challengers Bangalore:
Right from the start of the tournament, Virat Kohli and Co were impressive in all aspects of the game. They found the right option when it comes to death bowling, while the middle-order too looked equally impressive. RCB sits at third in the table with 5 wins in 7 games.
They have played some brilliant cricket until the tournament was halted. However, this can turn out to be detrimental for the franchise as a couple of impactful players is likely to miss out on the UAE stint.
Following are the players from RCB who are likely to miss the remainder of IPL 2021:
Glenn Maxwell, Daniel Sams, Daniel Christian, Kane Richardson, Adam Zampa
4. Mumbai Indians
Mumbai Indians don’t usually depend on their foreign players and would be least affected. The unavailability of Kieron Pollard, however, might hamper their spirits. The other two cricketers – Chris Lynn and Nathan Coulter-Nile have been irregular in the playing XI and thus would not matter much.
Here’s a look at all the foreign players who would miss the remainder of IPL 2021:
Chris Lynn, Kieron Pollard, Nathan Coulter-Nile
5.Rajasthan Royals
Injuries to important players hampered Rajasthan Royals’ campaign this year. The unavailability of foreign players in the second half is further likely to hamper their chances in the tournament. They currently sit at fifth in the table, having won 3 games in 7 matches.
They already have missed a couple of their overseas cricketers since the start of IPL 2021 and the UAE stint will make things even more worse for the franchise.
Following is the list of players who would be missed in the second half:
Liam Livingstone, Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Jos Buttler, Mustafizur Rahman, Andrew Tye
6.Punjab Kings
Punjab Kings, so far, had a forgettable tournament, having managed to secure only 3 wins in 8 games. The middle-order woes continue to haunt them as they would look to make a turnaround in the second half of the tournament.
Things will turn worse for the KL Rahul-led side even in the second half as they are likely to miss a couple of star cricketers in the UAE.
Here’s a look at all the players who would miss the remainder of IPL 2021:
Dawid Malan, Chris Gayle, Moises Henriques, Jhye Richardson, Chris Jordan, Riley Meredith
7. Kolkata Knight Riders:
The big names, once again, failed to produce consistent performances as KKR found themselves at the seventh position on the points table after the first phase of the tournament. They would be keen on producing a turnaround, however, the unavailability of the foreign players might affect their chances.
The absence of skipper Eoin Morgan, Pat Cummins, Sunil Narine, Andre Russell will be a massive blow to the franchise. Former skipper Dinesh Karthik is expected to lead if Morgan fails to reach UAE.
Here’s a look at all the players who would miss the second phase:
Eoin Morgan, Shakib Al-Hasan, Andre Russell, Ben Cutting, Sunil Narine, Pat Cummins
8. Sunrisers Hyderabad
One of the most consistent outfits in IPL, Sunrisers Hyderabad had a horrendous outing in the first half of IPL 2021. They only had 1 win out of 8 games, which pretty much sums how they performed during the tournament. They are currently sitting rock-bottom with only 2 points to their name.
On top of it, the absence of David Warner, Jason Roy, and Jonny Bairstow will make things difficult for the Orange Army. They will look for alternatives and seek replacements from BCCI.
Here’s a look at all the players who would be missing the second half of IPL 2021:
David Warner, Jason Roy, Jason Holder, Jonny Bairstow