The Australian pair of Pat Cummins and Travis Head are likely to rejoin the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) squad ahead of the resumption of IPL 2025 on May 17. They were among the overseas players who left India when the IPL was suspended on May 9 for one week due to cross-border tensions with Pakistan.
Both players were named in Australia’s Test squad for the World Test Championship (WTC) final against South Africa at Lord’s starting on June 11, leading to questions over whether they would return for the IPL, considering SRH has already been eliminated from playoff contention. The decision to resume the season was announced on May 11 after a ceasefire between India and Pakistan.
It is understood that Cummins, the SRH captain, and Head have informed the franchise they will return. Cummins’ manager, Neil Maxwell, told News Corp that “Pat has a responsibility as captain of the franchise and is looking at returning.”
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Ben Oliver, Cricket Australia’s head of national teams, said that while the situation is “extreme,” the board would “work with players on their individual decision to return to India or not” over the next few days.
There has been no confirmation yet on whether SRH’s other overseas players, including Heinrich Klaasen, Eshan Malinga, Kamindu Mendis, and Wiaan Mulder, will return. Mulder has also been named in South Africa’s Test squad for the WTC final.
After finishing as runners-up in IPL 2024, SRH has struggled in IPL 2025 and was one of the first teams to be eliminated from playoff contention. The team’s remaining three fixtures are all away games:
- Lucknow vs LSG (May 19)
- Bengaluru vs RCB (May 23)
- Delhi vs KKR (May 25)
The IPL released the revised schedule for the remainder of the season on May 12. There are 13 league games remaining, in addition to the four playoff fixtures. The league phase will be played at six venues: Delhi, Jaipur, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, and Bengaluru, with the playoff venues yet to be announced. The dates for the playoffs are as follows:
- Qualifier 1: May 29
- Eliminator: May 30
- Qualifier 2: June 1
- Final: June 3
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