IPL 2026: Starc, Hazlewood set to miss initial games; Edwards ruled out of tournament with foot injury

Australia pace duo of Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood are set to miss the initial part of IPL 2026 as Cricket Australia (CA) continues to monitor their workload with a packed international cricket calendar ahead, which could see Australia play as many as 21 Tests in a 12-month span with away series against South Africa, India and England in the pipeline, followed by the 2027 ODI World Cup.

This means that Starc (Delhi Capitals) and Hazlewood (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) will have to make arrangements in their lineups for the initial few games, given that both were sure starters in their respective teams. The Starc-Hazlewood duo’s absence only adds to the growing list of Australian players whose participation has been hampered due to fitness and injury concerns.

Pat Cummins will miss the first few games for Sunrisers Hyderabad, with Ishan Kishan set to take charge as the captain in his absence. SRH will also be without Australia's all-rounder Jack Edwards. Additionally, Chennai Super Kings pacer Nathan Ellis is set to miss the entirety of the tournament with a hamstring issue, throwing the franchise’s death bowling plans into disarray.

Hazlewood picked up a hamstring injury and then suffered an Achilles heel issue, forcing him to miss the home Ashes series in its entirety. He was a critical figure in RCB’s titular triumph in 2025 with 22 wickets at an average of 17.54. He played a few white-ball fixtures against South Africa and India (both at home) and New Zealand (away) as well as a Sheffield Shield game in November last year, but has been on the sidelines for the majority of the season.

Hazlewood’s compatriot and Australia skipper Cummins played a solitary Test in the Ashes, at the Adelaide Oval in mid-December, but later returned to rest and recover from the back issue he picked up in July last year during Australia’s tour to the West Indies.

Both Hazelwood and Cummins missed the 2026 T20 World Cup, which Australia exited in the group stage after a shock loss to Zimbabwe and co-hosts Sri Lanka.

As for Starc, he has retired from T20Is with an aim to extend his red-ball career, but remains a central cog in Australia’s ODI setup. He was bought by Delhi Capitals in the December auction for INR 11.75 crore, and his absence is certain to leave a giant hole in the team.

Starc was the leader of Australia’s Ashes pace attack and bagged the Player of the Series award for his haul of 31 wickets in his team’s dominant 4-1 win. He was also part of the Big Bash League (BBL) towards the fag end of the competition.

Jack Edwards to miss IPL 2026

Edwards, the 25-year-old seam-bowling allrounder signed by SRH for INR 3 crore, has been ruled out of the tournament in its entirety. He had an impressive run at BBL 2025-26 for runner-up Sydney Sixers, scalping 19 wickets and amassing 133 runs in 13 matches.

Those performances translated into his international debut as Edwards played the Perth T20I against Pakistan, returning wicketless after sending down two overs and scoring 5 off 6 with the bat.