IPL 2025: Why Mustafizur Rahman might end up not playing for DC despite being named as a replacement

The IPL 2025 is set to resume on 17 May. Ahead of that, many teams have announced replacements for players who are not willing to return for the remainder of the tournament. Delhi Capitals (DC) have brought in Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman as a replacement for their star Aussie batter, Jake Fraser-McGurk, who cited personal reasons for not coming back.

DC has paid ₹6 crore to get Mustafizur’s services. However, questions have been raised about his availability. A few days ago, the IPL made small changes to its ‘Player Replacement’ rule. Now, no player signed after the league was suspended is eligible for retention next year. 

The original deadline for securing replacements was the 12th match of the season. Teams can still sign players after that, but those players cannot be retained for the next season.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh are scheduled to play T20Is against the UAE on 17 and 19 May. Mustafizur and others were seen leaving for the tour. A No Objection Certificate (NOC) is required from the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) for Mustafizur to play in the IPL.

"We are not saying that we won't let Mustafizur play in the IPL…” - BCB director

Regarding the situation, as quoted in Cricbuzz, the BCB director said: "We are not saying that we won't let Mustafizur play in the IPL for the Delhi Capitals, but at the same time, there is a thing called national commitment, and he needs to fulfil that."

"Along with that, if we had released him in that case, what would we have done with the two cricketers who took part in PSL, as they could have asked why we were not releasing them? We don't want to be in a position that allows any Board to point a finger at us."

The two PSL cricketers mentioned are Rishad Hossain for Lahore Qalandars and Nahid Rana for Peshawar Zalmi. If the BCB gives NOCs to all three players now, they would need to call up replacements for the UAE series, which would cause more logistical issues. 

From the Board’s point of view, the smart decision at this moment seems to be not giving NOCs to any of them ahead of the UAE series. The DC have three group-stage matches left and are still in the race for the playoffs. 

As things stand, Mustafizur might not play in the group stage. But, eventually, if DC qualify for the playoffs and Mustafizur is granted a NOC, he might get a chance to represent the franchise.

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