IPL 2025: Mustafizur Rahman heads to Dubai after Delhi Capitals announce replacement signing, Bangladesh NOC pending

Mustafizur Rahman (Source: Mustafizur Rahman/X)

The Bangladesh left-arm pacer 's participation in the final leg of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 is doubtful. The bowler has been signed as the temporary replacement for Jake Fraser-McGurk by the Delhi Capitals (DC), but the presence of him is uncertain in the tournament.

Fraser-McGurk opted out of the 18th edition of the IPL due to personal reasons, forcing Delhi Capitals to sign Mustafizur as a temporary player. But, the 29-year-old put out a post on social media to confirm that he was travelling with the Bangladesh squad to Dubai for the two T20Is to be played against United Arab Emirates (UAE) on May 17 and May 19.

The reports mentioned that he has yet to receive a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB). The was suspended due to the cross-border tensions between India and Pakistan and forced to halt the league for a week. Following the halt, majority of the overseas players flew back home and are trying to get back to India as soon as possible.

The rearranged schedule of the league is colliding with several bilateral series, making multiple players unavailable as they chsose prioritise their national commitment. This became a concern for several franchises, making the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to .

Heading to UAE to play against them. Keep me in your prayers. pic.twitter.com/dI7DHTfj73

— Mustafizur Rahman (@Mustafiz90) May 14, 2025

As per reports, the BCB are watchful about making a decision that will not bring up controversy with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the BCCI, as players such as Rishad Hossain and Nahid Rana opted out of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) and joined the national team in Dubai.

“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 Bangladesh Cricket Board official was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz.

“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?” the director asked.

The left-arm pacer Rahman could join the DC camp post Monday, but will not be part of the clash against Gujarat Titans (GT) in Delhi. The Axar Patel-led team are also scheduled to face Mumbai Indians (MI) on May 21 and Punjab Kings (PBKS) on May 24 as their final league matches.