Harry Brook has his reasons behind pulling out of IPL 2025 but could this have an impact on his white-ball game?
England star Harry Brook suffered the consequences of pulling out of the Indian Premier League (IPL) for a second consecutive year. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has imposed a two-year ban on his participation in the IPL.
Brook was picked up by Delhi Capitals (DC) for INR 6.25 crore, re-signing him after he had pulled out of the previous season. He would have been a likely starter in their line-up but decided to withdraw citing the need to commit to preparing for the upcoming assignments for England.
Following several players pulling out of the IPL on short notice in recent years, the BCCI had sent a strong warning to overseas players. Brook taking this call despite that suggests he must have thought this through.
England are gearing up for the busiest cricket calendar in a while. They will be hosting West Indies in a white-ball series in June. Ten days later, they will kick off a five-match Test series against India, which will last till the first week of August. In September, they are scheduled to play more white-ball cricket against South Africa and Ireland. Then comes a mega event – the Ashes in November.
Brook has been playing cricket without much time off. He sees this as an opportunity to recharge himself ahead of an intense schedule. He could’ve played IPL and rested from the white-ball series against the Windies. But he is the leading contender to take over the white-ball captaincy from Jos Buttler, who stepped down after a humiliating Champions Trophy 2025 campaign.
The 26-year-old would like the job but it would mean he cannot skip much of the white-ball games. Skipping the IPL was perhaps an easier option for him. Undoubtedly, this move also elevates his stature in English cricket as someone who chooses the national team over money.
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If the last month has shown anything, it’s that Harry Brook still has a long way to go in becoming a reliable white-ball batter. His weaknesses against spin were exposed on the tour of India and in the Champions Trophy.
IPL is arguably the best league for player development alongside the participation of world-class players. The experience of playing in these conditions against top-quality spinners can be valuable to a player’s overall growth. On the India tour, Brook struggled to pick up Varun Chakravarthy and was all at sea. Facing the likes of Chakravarthy, Sunil Narine, and others on these pitches would have helped Brook, especially with the next T20 World Cup set to be played in India and Sri Lanka.
Being part of Delhi Capitals, he would have had the chance to face countless deliveries against Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel. Facing these guys in the nets day in and day out would have enhanced Brook’s game.
There are two types of batters against spin – those who just possess the ability to pick the delivery from the bowler’s hand and those who read off the pitch. You need practice in both cases but the latter even more so. At the moment, the Englishman seems to be in the latter group.
With the ban, Brook can only be part of the league in 2028. Not to say those who don’t play in IPL can’t be good players of spin but it can certainly speed up the process.
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