From Mitchell Starc to Nathan Ellis: Complete list of every major pacer ruled out, delayed or doubtful for IPL 2026

IPL 2026 starts on March 28 and the pace bowling picture across the ten franchises has never looked more unsettled in the days before a season.

A combination of injuries sustained during a packed international calendar and Cricket Australia’s workload management decisions for their senior pacers has left almost every franchise dealing with some form of pace bowling uncertainty.

Here is the complete status of every major pacer ruled out delayed or doubtful as of March 20 2026.

IPL 2026: Full list of every major pacer ruled out, delayed or doubtful

Ruled out for the entire IPL 2026 season

Nathan Ellis(CSK): The Australian pacer aggravated a hamstring injury during the Australia One Day Cup final playing for Tasmania against New South Wales.

He has been ruled out of the entire tournament and CSK are actively seeking a replacement with names like Ottneil Baartman and Sean Abbott being considered as like for like death bowling options.

Harshit Rana (KKR): The young Indian pacer underwent knee surgery in February and will play no part in IPL 2026. He was seen on crutches at the BCCI Naman Awards where he collected the Best Debutant award.

KKR have already brought in Blessing Muzarabani as cover and are also looking at options like Simarjeet Singh and Sandeep Warrier as potential Indian replacements.

Sam Curran(RR): The Rajasthan Royals trade acquisition is out with a groin injury picked up after a busy schedule that included the UAE ILT20 with Desert Vipers, a stint in the BBL with Sydney Sixers and national duty in the T20 World Cup.

His absence leaves a significant gap in RR’s bowling balance and could bring Donovan Ferreira or a bigger role for Ravindra Jadeja into their plans.

Jack Edwards (SRH): The 25-year-old Australian allrounder has been ruled out with a foot injury before making his IPL debut. He took 19 wickets in 13 BBL games for Sydney Sixers and had been earmarked as a tactical seam option for SRH. His absence adds to an already difficult situation for the franchise.

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Missing the start of the IPL 2026 season

Pat Cummins (SRH): The SRH captain is recovering from a lumbar stress injury that kept him out of four Ashes Tests and the T20 World Cup. He will miss the first three to four games at minimum. Ishan Kishan has been named stand-in captain and will lead SRH in the opener against RCB on March 28.

Mitchell Starc(DC): Cricket Australia are holding Starc back as part of workload management ahead of Australia’s demanding schedule which includes up to 21 Tests between August 2026 and August 2027.

Starc played all five Ashes Tests and featured in the BBL but CA have decided the early IPL games are not worth the risk. He will miss DC’s opener against LSG on April 1 with his return dependent on CA’s return to play protocols.

Josh Hazlewood(RCB): The defending champions’ pace leader has been in rehabilitation for five months after picking up hamstring and Achilles injuries during the Australian summer.

He missed both the Ashes and the T20 World Cup. He is expected to return around April 12 for RCB’s game against MI at the Wankhede but that timeline is also subject to CA clearance.

Lockie Ferguson (PBKS): The New Zealand pacer will miss the early stages of the tournament to spend time with his family after the birth of his son.

Ferguson was clear about his priorities. “Just had a wee son trying to spend as much time as I can at home and help the wife out. I’ll have a few weeks off after this before sort of heading to the later stages of the IPL.” PBKS will manage without him for the opening games.

Doubtful and being monitored ahead of IPL 2026

Matheesha Pathirana(KKR): The Sri Lankan pacer suffered a hamstring injury during Sri Lanka’s T20 World Cup campaign but Sri Lanka Cricket declared him fit on March 20 as per PTI.

He is expected to join KKR but the franchise will assess his match readiness before their opener against MI on March 29. Given that Harshit Rana is already out for the season Pathirana’s return would be a significant boost for KKR’s pace attack.

Adam Milne(RR): The New Zealand pacer suffered a hamstring injury during the SA20 which ruled him out of the T20 World Cup. Although Milne has joined the camp, his recovery is ongoing and Rajasthan will be monitoring his progress carefully especially given the Sam Curran absence.

Eshan Malinga (SRH): The Sri Lankan pacer missed the T20 World Cup with a shoulder injury and his availability for the start of the IPL remains uncertain. SRH are already without Cummins and Edwards and Malinga’s fitness situation adds another question mark to their bowling plans heading into the opener.

Mayank Yadav(LSG): After missing most of 2025 with injury Mayank is reportedly fully fit and eager to play. LSG are being cautious with his workload management but he is expected to feature in the tournament. If he stays fit he could be one of the most exciting stories of IPL 2026.

What it all means for the opening weeks of IPL 2026

The scale of pace bowling unavailability heading into IPL 2026 is unlike anything the tournament has seen before.

Four players ruled out for the entire season. Four more missing the opening phase. Several others are being monitored carefully.

Delhi Capitals and SRH lose their primary powerplay threats in Starc and Cummins for the first week. RCB defend their title without Hazlewood and will rely on Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Yash Dayal to lead the attack until he returns. CSK and KKR have already brought in replacements for Ellis and Rana respectively.

The franchises that manage this disruption most effectively in the first two weeks will have a significant advantage when the full strength squads eventually take the field.

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