IPL 2021: Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman arrives in India to join Rajasthan Royals
Bangladesh’s left-arm pacer Mustafizur Rahman has arrived in India to feature in the Indian Premier League (IPL 2021). He will play for Rajasthan Royals, having been purchased by the franchise at the IPL auction for INR 1 crore.
Rajasthan Royals will take on Punjab Kings in their first match of IPL 2021 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on April 12.
Taking to their official Twitter account on Monday, Rajasthan Royals shared a picture of Mustafizur Rahman showing the thumbs-up sign on his arrival. RR captioned the image:
“Monday morning starts with a smile and a thumbs up from @Mustafiz90. #HallaBol #RoyalsFamily #IPL2021.”
There was some controversy surrounding the Bangladesh Cricket Board's (BCB) No Objection Certificate (NOC) that was needed for Mustafizur Rahman to take part in IPL 2021.
After Shakib Al Hasan and the BCB indulged in a war of words over the issue, the Bangladesh board was reportedly pondering over whether they should grant the NOC to Mustafizur Rahman.
Since the 25-year-old is not featuring in the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka, the BCB felt it would be better for the pacer to sharpen his white-ball skills in the IPL.
BCB's chief selector Minhajul Abedin was quoted as telling Cricbuzz:
"We have given him NOC for IPL, as he is not in our Test plans for the upcoming tour of Sri Lanka. It's better if he plays there and gains some experience."
Mustafizur Rahman set to miss Rajasthan Royals’ first two matches in IPL 2021: Reports
Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman looks set to miss Rajasthan Royals' first two matches in IPL 2021. He was with the national team during the tour of New Zealand, which ended on April 1.
Having landed in India for IPL 2021, Mustafizur Rahman will now have to serve the mandatory seven-day quarantine as per protocol. He is thus set to miss Rajasthan Royals’ first match against Punjab Kings on April 12.
The franchise will play their second game against Delhi Capitals on April 15. According to some reports, Mustafizur Rahman might miss this match as well.
The Bangladesh cricketer last featured in the IPL in 2018. In 24 matches till date, he has 24 wickets at a strike rate of 22.79 and an economy rate of 7.51.