The 2026 edition of the IPL gets underway on March 28 and there are a host of Australian players due to appear at the tournament following the conclusion of their domestic season. Here’s a rundown of who is going where.
Mitchell Starc (Delhi Capitals)
It was a surprise when it was revealed that Australia’s most durable fast bowler would miss the start of the IPL for workload management reasons given he has not played any cricket since the BBL final on January 25. But he did have a huge Ashes campaign and Cricket Australia (CA) are very wary of his importance in the 20 Tests they have scheduled between August 2026 and August 2027. His arrival date and how much he will be available for Capitals remains unknown.
Pat Cummins (Sunrisers Hyderabad)
Australia’s Test captain is set to be unavailable for the first half of the IPL having not played since the Adelaide Test against England in mid-December, which was his only match since he was diagnosed with a lumbar stress injury following the Caribbean tour last July. Cummins has arrived in India and did light sprints at warm-ups at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday, before bowling casually into an empty net. He told the Business of Sport podcast that his best-case scenario will be a return to full fitness for the second half of the IPL and the knockout stages in late May. Ishan Kishan has been named Sunrisers stand-in captain while Cummins is unavailable.
Editor’s Picks
2 Related
Travis Head (Sunrisers Hyderabad)
One half of the Travishek double act enters off a lean 12 months in T20 cricket. He has made just one T20 half-century in his last 14 innings, and that came in the World Cup against Sri Lanka, despite starring in Test cricket during the same period. He has played a Sheffield Shield game since leaving Sri Lanka but is set to play the full IPL and is hoping to reproduce the form he showed in the 2024 IPL when he helped Sunrisers to the final.
Cameron Green (Kolkata Knight Riders)
Green enters the IPL as the most expensive overseas purchase in history at the latest mini-auction but is coming off a difficult summer – which ended with a terse exchange with a journalist in Sydney – where he failed to make a half-century in five Tests and seven T20Is in Pakistan and at the World Cup. He did score 135 in his most recent Shield match before leaving for India. He joins KKR after missing last year’s IPL due to back surgery having had stints at Mumbai Indians and RCB before that.
Josh Hazlewood (Royal Challengers Bangalore)
Hazlewood is another who is set for a delayed start after a horror run with injury. He has not played since injuring his hamstring in a Shield game on November 12 last year. He missed the entire Ashes and the T20 World Cup after he suffered Achilles/calf issues in his rehab and is set to miss the start of the IPL as well with a return to play date still unknown.
Tim David looks on R Param / © BCCI
Tim David (Royal Challengers Bangalore)
David has had a frustrating last 12 months with two hamstring injuries curtailing his availability. He missed RCB’s run to the title last year and then missed most of the BBL and all the build-up to the World Cup before falling cheaply his only two innings against Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka. He will be hoping for an uninterrupted run.
Matt Short (Chennai Super Kings)
Short travels to India after a wretched run of form and injury. He was cruelly dropped from Australia’s World Cup squad on the eve of the tournament. He then broke his finger in his most recent outing for Victoria in a Shield match. But he is set for his first stint at CSK after playing six games for Punjab Kings in 2023 that helped propel him into Australia’s set-up.
Spencer Johnson (Chennai Super Kings)
Johnson was a shock addition to CSK as a replacement for the injured Nathan Ellis. He has not played since last year’s IPL due to a stress fracture in his back. The latest scan, less than a week ago, finally showed the bone had healed. He has been bowling recently but only at 60%. He is also undergoing some minor action modifications. CSK expect him to arrive around April 21-23.
Mitchell Marsh (Lucknow Super Giants)
Australia’s T20I skipper will be looking for another bumper season with LSG after scoring a century and six fifties last year in 13 appearances. He should be very fresh after a limited World Cup campaign. He was injured for the first two matches but returned with some sublime ball-striking against Sri Lanka and Oman, posting scores of 54 and 64 not out.
Marcus Stoinis top-scored for Australia with a brisk 45 AFP/Getty Images
Josh Inglis (Lucknow Super Giants)
Inglis was an unusual auction purchase by LSG given he is only set to be available for the latter stages of the tournament due to his wedding in April. He was an outstanding contributor for Punjab last year but how he fits in LSG’s line-up when available remains to be seen given the overseas batting options they have. He has had a difficult six months form wise across all formats and has not made a half-century in 20 innings across all forms at both domestic and international level since August last year.
Marcus Stoinis (Punjab Kings)
Stoinis was one of Australia’s best in the World Cup scoring crucial runs against Ireland and taking wickets in the two losses against Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka. He returns to Punjab were he played a crucial role as a finisher last year in their run to the final. His experience will be vital given their lack of experienced overseas batters.
Owen suffered second-year blues in the BBL after his form at international level dropped off following a sparkling start for Australia last year. He was not considered for the T20 World Cup and like many of his countryman is in a huge slump. He has gone 25 innings across all three formats without reaching 50. He returns to Punjab after playing one game for them last year having joined from the PSL after the tournament was paused in May.
play
9:53
Can SRH bat oppositions out of the game?
Faf du Plessis and Abhinav Mukund analyse
The left-arm seamer is heading to Punjab for the first time having never played a game in the IPL. His other franchise experience beyond the BBL has come in the Hundred and the Blast in England, and in the PSL last year. Dwarshuis had an excellent BBL but only played one game for Australia at the World Cup and returned figures of 0 for 40 against Zimbabwe. He heads to India after taking 3 for 30 in his last game for NSW in Australia’s One-Day Cup final, which the Blues won.
Cooper Connolly (Punjab Kings)
Connolly heads to the IPL for the first time coming off a horror run of form. He was purchased by Punjab last year after excellent showings against India in ODI cricket and good form at the start of the BBL. But in his last 17 innings across the BBL, T20Is, including the World Cup, and the Shield, where he was dropped for Western Australia’s last game, he is averaging 7.20 with a top score of 28 and only five scores above 10.
Xavier Bartlett (Punjab Kings)
Bartlett heads back to Punjab after playing four matches for them last year. His recent form has been patchy. He finished the BBL strongly before starting the T20I tour of Pakistan superbly. But he was very expensive in his next three T20Is, which included two wicketless outings in the World Cup where he only bowled half his quota, before taking 2 for 27 against Oman in his last game. He arrives in India after playing a first-class match to finish his domestic season where took five wickets in 35 overs for Queensland against Tasmania.
Nathan Ellis (Chennai Super Kings) and Jack Edwards (Sunrisers Hyderabad) have both been withdrawn from the IPL due to injury.
