Starc to make IPL call on Friday as South Africa debate availability

Mitchell Starc is set to make his call on whether to return to the Indian Premier League on Friday, a week after Starc and Australian women’s captain Alyssa Healy fled the country in the wake of an air raid warning that abruptly stopped the Twenty20 tournament.

And fellow Test squad member Josh Inglis is considering a delayed return to India to balance a hectic schedule ahead of next month’s World Test Championship final at Lord’s.

Australia’s Mitchell Starc in action in the IPL.Credit: AP

Starc (playing for Delhi Capitals), his wife Healy and Inglis (Punjab Kings) were all in Dharamshala when the game was called off due to an air raid warning nearby that forced the stadium floodlights to be cut.

Healy declared this week that players should get Australian government reassurances of safety before returning, and players were given a detailed briefing on Wednesday night about how the IPL will resume and security measures in place.

Inglis, who is one of numerous Australian batters duelling for limited spots in the Test XI to face South Africa in the WTC final, is considering the prospect of either flying to India on Friday, or delaying his departure until early next week after a few more days at home.

This would mean he misses Punjab’s first game on Saturday night but remains available for their final two regular season games plus the finals. That plan also has the added benefit of seeing how the tournament resumption plays out.

A source close to Starc, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told this masthead of the looming decision. Starc would be a crucial part of Delhi’s bid to make the IPL playoffs – they are currently in fifth place – if he returns, but he is expected to skip the rest of the tournament.

Meanwhile, Indian cricket has flexed its muscle to overrule South African plans for the world Test championship final, cutting back preparation time for the likes of Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen ahead of their showdown with Australia by insisting they stay in India until the end of the IPL.

The resumption of the IPL, after conflict between India and Pakistan, is a far bigger money spinner than the Test decider, forcing difficult conversations among boards and franchises as cricket’s hectic calendar strains to cope with a week’s delay.

CSA’s team performance arm initially pushed a hard line on Wednesday night, insisting that its eight IPL players would not be part of the resuming tournament for any longer than the originally slated May 25 finish of the competition.

South African speedster Kagiso Rabada.Credit: Getty Images

“One thing we’ve made clear, and we are finalising it with the IPL and the BCCI, is that we are sticking to our original plan when it comes to WTC preparations with May 26 being the latest for the Test guys to come back,” CSA’s director of cricket Enoch Nkwe said overnight.

But a few hours later, Nkwe issued a clarification to Indian and South African media that acknowledged conversations going on well above his station, at executive and board levels between CSA, the BCCI and IPL franchises. “Correction - the squad will resume training for the game on June 3rd,” he said.

A further twist arrived late on Thursday with ESPNcricinfo reporting that CSA had secured the release of its Test players from the IPL playoffs, allowing the Proteas to prepare as originally scheduled.

That outcome would mean Rabada, Jansen, Aiden Markram, Lungi Ngidi and Tristan Stubbs, among others, get their originally planned preparation for the final, having spent the past couple of months focused on Twenty20 and now having to readjust to Test matches.

South Africa are scheduled to play a warm-up fixture against Zimbabwe at Arundel on June 3.

Should the Proteas’ prep time be cut short, it will be the second time in as many Test championship finals that Australia have benefited from the IPL ties of their opponents.

In 2023, India had four players take part in the IPL final on May 29 and then turn out in the Test decider a week later, whereas for Australia, only Cameron Green was involved in the latter stages of the tournament for Mumbai Indians.

Cricket Australia had previously stated that it would support players regardless of whether they wished to return to India, but did not declare a fixed date on which they must report for Test duty.

Only one member of Australia’s Test squad – Inglis – is likely to face the Proteas’ dilemma if Starc withdraws as expected.

Inglis, who plays for the Punjab side coached by Ricky Ponting, was still weighing up his options on Thursday morning.

Among other Australian Test squad members, captain Pat Cummins and deputy Travis Head are set to return to India to play for Sunrisers Hyderabad, but know their last game is on May 25 as the side has already been eliminated from the knockout stage.

Josh Hazlewood (Royal Challengers Bangalore) has ruled out a return to the IPL due to a shoulder niggle.

Australia held the first of a couple of Brisbane-based training camps for non-IPL players this week, and will also train for about a week in London before the Test final starts on Wednesday, June 11.

Cummins’ team is not playing any kind of formal warm-up match, preferring to focus on centre wicket training.

Bowler Sean Abbott will not return to the Pakistan Super League after the charter plane close shave, but Ben Dwarshuis plans to go back.

News, results and expert analysis from the weekend of sport are sent every Monday. Sign up for our Sport newsletter.