The injury list ahead of the Indian Premier League 2026 continues to grow, with Sunrisers Hyderabad and Royal Challengers Bengaluru emerging as the latest teams to face fitness issues. Their Australian stars Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood are said to miss the opening games of the season.
Cummins has been out of international cricket for some time, last playing in December 2025 against England at the Adelaide Oval where he took three wickets in each innings. The SRH skipper has also missed the 2026 T20 World Cup due to injury concerns and has been working his way back to full fitness.
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Hazlewood is in a similar situation, the Australian pacer has also been sidelined by injury in recent months. He last played competitive cricket in November 2025 for New South Wales and subsequently missed both the Ashes series and the 2026 T20 World Cup.
According to a Hindustan Times report, Cummins and Hazlewood might miss the opening few matches of IPL 2026 for SRH and RCB. However, both players are expected to feature at some stage in the tournament if they regain full fitness in the coming weeks.
So far, there is no official confirmation from any franchise regarding the availability of the two Australian pacers.
WHO CAN REPLACE CUMMINS, LISKA?
If Hazlewood misses the opening matches, New Zealand pacer Jacob Duffy or Sri Lanka’s Nuwan Thushara could take on a bigger role in RCB’s early-season pace.
SRH also have replacement options in their squad. England’s Brydon Carse and Sri Lankan pacer Ehsan Malinga are among the bowlers who could enter the playing eleven if Cummins is unavailable.
The lead could also be affected for the Hyderabad series in the opening game. According to a Tech Word News report, Ishan Kishan or Abhishek Sharma could captain the team against Bengaluru if Cummins is not fit in time.
Both players have managerial experience after captaining Jharkhand and Punjab in the 2025-26 Vijay Hazare Trophy.
IPL 2026 begins on March 28 with RCB taking on SRH at the defending champions’ home ground, the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, with the teams hoping to regain fitness for their key players in time for the kick-off.
IPL 2026 INJURY LIST GROWS
Cummins and Hazlewood are not the only players struggling with injuries ahead of the new season.
Kolkata Knight Riders could also be missing key players, with Harshit Rana playing a key role in their 2024 title campaign, he is expected to miss a significant portion of the tournament.
Sri Lankan pacer Matheesha Pathirana, bought for Rs 18 crore in the auction, is also not fully fit and may miss a few matches for the three-time champions.
Meanwhile, Wanindu Hasaranga remains a doubt for IPL 2026 after suffering a hamstring injury during the T20 World Cup that ruled him out of the rest of the tournament.
The Sri Lankan all-rounder has been signed by Lucknow Super Giants and his recovery timeline remains uncertain ahead of the league.
With the tournament fast approaching, several franchises are keeping a close eye on the fitness of their players as the IPL gears up for another tough season.
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Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
March 17, 2026 1:33 PM IST
