England Star Pulls Out Of IPL 2025 Just 12 Days Before Start, Risks 2-Year Ban

England batter Harry Brook has pulled out of the 18th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) this year, for the second successive season and stands at risk of facing a two-year ban from future editions of the cash-rich league. As per 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), who got him in the last year's auction for Rs 6.25 crores.

There is nothing official that has emerged on the matter from the IPL itself and Brook has not given a reason for his withdrawal so far. He is the frontrunner for the position of white-ball captaincy for England, replacing Jos Buttler following a disastrous run in the 2023 50-over World Cup to a winless ICC Champions Trophy.

An all-format player for England with 18 months left on his central contract, so workload could be one of the reasons behind his withdrawal.

His decision to withdraw leaves him at risk of a two-year ban from the league. This new rule was put in place ahead of the 2025 Mega Auction, based on reactions of all 10 franchises who were frustrated with last-minute withdrawals of several players, mostly English, at the last minute since last few years.

In a note to franchises last September, the IPL said, "Any [overseas] player who registers for [an] auction and, after getting picked at the auction, makes himself unavailable before the start of the season will get banned from participating in the IPL/IPL auction for two seasons."

The only exception, the governing council of the league said, will be for "an injury/medical condition, which will have to be confirmed by the