IPL 2025: Mustafizur Rahman's commitment with DC uncertain for remainder of the season

Mustafizur Rahman was signed by DC as a replacement for Jake Fraser-McGurk

Mustafizur Rahman was recently signed by Delhi Capitals (DC) as a replacement for Jake-Fraser McGurk for the rest of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. As IPL 2025 is set to resume from May 17 after it was paused for one week since May 9, there have been multiple foreign players who have decided against returning to India.

Jake-Fraser McGurk is one of those players, who decided against returning to India for the rest of the season. And as a result, DC decided to choose the Bangladeshi speedster as a replacement player.

DC, who also have Mitchell Starc and T Natarajan, will have Mustafizur as their third left-arm pace option. When the season resumes on May 17, DC will still be vying for a position in the IPL 2025 playoffs.

With 13 points from 11 games, they are now in fifth place, just one point behind MI, who are in fourth place and have played one more game. DC will face fellow top-four contenders GT, MI, and PBKS in their final three games.

According to sources, Mustafizur was just told he had been selected by DC on Wednesday since the decision to sign him was taken quickly, even before he had a chance to formally ask the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) for a No Objection Certificate (NOC).

Bangladesh Cricket Board wants Mustafizur Rahman to honor national commitment over the IPL

As per a Cricbuzz report, the BCB is attempting to evaluate the circumstances and is aware of the need to make a logical choice in this area, but they are also anxious to prevent an awkward position.

Since giving the fast bowler a NOC may place the BCB in a difficult situation with regard to two other players, the Mustafizur debate gathered traction in BCB circles. Along with Mustafizur, Rishad Hossain, and Nahid Rana, who previously played in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), are included in the Bangladesh T20I team for the UAE visit. As a result, the BCB would have to offer Rishad and Rana the same NOC if the left-arm pacer was given one.

“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,” a BCB official told Cricbuzz.

Although it is known that Mustafizur may be freed following the two-match series against the United Arab Emirates, a different source maintained that the pacer might also be released following the first match against the United Arab Emirates in order to be available for DC’s May 18 encounter against Gujarat Titans in Delhi.

In the second scenario, Mustafizur would represent the franchise in three group-stage matches, but if DC advance to the tournament’s knockout stages, the number of matches might rise. The 29-year-old’s three-match campaign ends on May 24, so if they ultimately opt to play the series against Pakistan, which is set to begin on May 27, he will return and join the team.

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