Uncertainty looms over Mustafizur's IPL participation

Will Mustafizur Rahman take part in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) season? The question is relevant after the Bangladesh pacer boarded the flight for Dubai on Wednesday (May 14) to be a part of the two-match T20I series against UAE, despite being picked by Delhi Capitals for the remainder of the tournament as a replacement for Jake Fraser-McGurk, reports Cricbuzz.

The discussion around Mustafizur gained prominence in the BCB circles as granting an NOC to the fast bowler could potentially put the Board in a tricky position with regards to two other players. Rishad Hossain and Nahid Rana, who were part of PSL earlier, are also part of the Bangladesh T20I squad for the tour of UAE, along with Mustafizur. Therefore, if the left-arm pacer were granted an NOC, then the BCB would be forced to do the same for Rishad and Rana.

"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," a BCB director said on request of anonymity.

"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?" he added.

"We don't want to be in a position that allows any Board to point a finger at us," he said.

It is understood that Mustafizur could be released after the two-match series against UAE, but another source insisted that the pacer could also be released after the opening game against UAE so that he could be available for Delhi Capitals' next game against Gujarat Titans at Delhi on May 18.

The second scenario means that Mustafizur would play three group-stage matches for the franchise, while the number of matches may increase if DC progress into the tournament's knockout stages.