England batsman Harry Brook pulled out of the Indian Premier League (IPL) for the second successive year, a decision that could trigger a ban from future editions.
Brook was signed by Delhi Capitals in December 2023 but pulled out of last year’s campaign following the death of his grandmother.
The 26-year-old apologized “unreservedly” to the Delhi Capitals franchise and the team’s supporters. He acknowledged not everyone will understand his decision, but stressed that playing for England remains his “priority and focus.”
“I have made the very difficult decision to pull out of the upcoming IPL. I apologize unreservedly to the Delhi Capitals and their supporters,” Brook wrote on social media. “It is a really important time for England cricket and I want to fully commit to preparing for the upcoming series.
“In order to do this, I need time to recharge after the busiest period in my career to date. I know not everyone will understand, and I don’t expect them to, but I have to do what I believe is right and playing for my country remains my priority and focus.”
Brook is one of the favorites, along with England test captain Ben Stokes, to replace Jos Buttler as England’s white-ball captain following the team’s group-stage elimination at the bygone Champions Trophy 2025.
According to a report in ESPNCricinfo, Brook’s move to pull out from the league was conveyed by the officials of England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) last week and then revealed to his franchise Delhi Capitals (DC).
The report also added that nothing officially has emerged on the matter from the IPL and Brook has not given a reason for his withdrawal so far. But the England batter is likely to face punishment after the IPL Governing Council had made some stringent rules to reduce the issue of player withdrawals without a geniune reason.
Before the IPL 2025 auction last year, the league’s Governing Council put in place a rule which read, “Any player who registers in the player auction and after getting picked at the auction, makes himself unavailable before the start of the season, will get banned from participating in the tournament and player auction for two seasons.”
