Big News: CSK pick 30-year-old speedster as Nathan Ellis replacement for IPL 2026

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have signed Australian left-arm fast bowler Spencer Johnson as a replacement for the injured Nathan Ellis ahead of IPL 2026.

Spencer Johnson's IPL career

Johnson has played nine IPL matches so far since making his debut with Gujarat Titans, who picked him up for INR 10 crore in the 2024 auction. He also featured for the Kolkata Knight Riders last season, where he played four matches.

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Why Nathan Ellis ruled out of IPL 2026?

Ellis, 31, has been ruled out of the entire season after his hamstring injury returned during a domestic one-day final on March 11. CSK acted quickly to bring in Johnson as his replacement.

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Johnson withdrew from PSL before joining CSK

Interestingly, Johnson was earlier signed by Quetta Gladiators in the Pakistan Super League. However, he later withdrew from the tournament due to personal reasons. The team then replaced him with Alzarri Joseph.

Johnson has represented Australia 13 times in white-ball cricket. In T20 Internationals, he picked up 14 wickets in eight matches, with an economy rate of 8.96. In the IPL, he has picked up five wickets so far. He will join the five-time champions CSK for INR 1.5 crore.

CSK's IPL 2026 schedule

The Chennai-based franchise will start its Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 campaign against the Rajasthan Royals on March 30. 

CSK updated squad for IPL 2026

Ruturaj Gaikwad(C), MS Dhoni, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Dewald Brevis, Ayush Mhatre, Kartik Sharma, Sarfaraz Khan, Urvil Patel, Anshul Kamboj, Khaleel Ahmed, Noor Ahmad, Jamie Overton, Ramakrishna Ghosh, Prashant Veer, Matthew William Short, Aman Khan, Zak Foulkes, Mukesh Choudhary, Spencer Johnson, Shreyas Gopal, Gurjapneet Singh, Akeal Hosein, Matt Henry, Rahul Chahar.