Punjab Kings co-owner Ness Wadia criticized Australian wicketkeeper Josh Inglis, calling his behavior “unprofessional” over the timing of his communication regarding availability for IPL 2026. The PBKS owner said the Shreyas Iyer-led side wanted to keep Inglis but were informed just 45 minutes before the start of April, when his player was only available briefly, about the retention deadline.
Inglis’ limited availability had already been discussed before the mini-auction, yet he still commanded a hefty price. After initially going unsold, the Australian started a bidding war and was eventually picked up by Lucknow Super Giants for Rs 8.6 crore.
WITH IPL 2026 will run from March 26 to May 31Inglis is set to miss a substantial part of the season, suggesting that LSG may view him as a longer-term option rather than an immediate impact player.
Wadia stressed that the problem was not Inglis’ wedding, but the late announcement, which left little room for the franchise to adjust its plans. Speaking to Sportstar, he said: “We didn’t really let Josh go. I mean, unfortunately Josh only told us at the last minute, which wasn’t very fair considering he’d been with us for a while. I think everyone knew when the holdup was coming and 45 minutes before it was due, we were told by him that he was getting married and needed time off and a couple of weeks to recover.”
Wadia said the PBKS players have made their position clear. “We told him he should have informed us earlier. I don’t think it was very professional of him. I don’t think it’s very professional of anybody to know there’s a deadline. You can’t call somebody 45 minutes in advance and say, ‘Hey, I’m not coming,’ especially when he knew we were holding it,” he said.
Despite the criticism, Wadia wished Inglis well. “But I wish him all the best. He is a good player and I am sure he will do well for Australia. And we will see if he plays in the IPL or not. I wish him all the best because he is a human being. But the way he behaved was not very professional,” he added.
Inglis has since confirmed that he will not be available for the entire IPL 2026 season. Speaking to ABC Sport, the 29-year-old said his limited availability was due to his wedding in early April. “Well, I’ve kind of been watching (the IPL auction) a lot and I’ve been sidelined in the pecking order. I don’t have full availability this year. I’m getting married at the beginning of April so I wasn’t really expecting to go to be honest,” Inglis said.
He added that he didn’t expect to be selected after initially going unsold. “I kind of saw my name not selling. The first one I was like, ‘ok, stuff it, I’m going to bed’ and I needed to switch on for tomorrow (The Ashes). Then I woke up to the news. I didn’t know until I saw a couple of reports this morning.”
– The end
Issued by:
Saurabh Kumar
Published on:
December 18, 2025
