Home
England's star batter Harry Brook became the first overseas player to face a ban from next two seasons of Indian Premier League (IPL) for pulling out of the season after the auction. Brook pulled out of IPL for second consecutive season. While he cited personal reasons last season, this time he said he wants to focus on England cricket rather than franchise cricket. Brook's teammates Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid support the two-year ban on the batter.
IPL governing council came up with the new policy after overseas players pulled out of the season only to get big bucks in the mini auction. Ali, who will be representing Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) this season does not see the ban as 'harsh'.
“It’s not harsh. I kind of agree with it, in a way, because a lot of people do that,” the former England all-rounder said on the podcast “Beard Before Cricket.”
“A lot of people have done it in the past, and then they come back in and they end up getting a better financial package, or whatever it is. And he kind of messes a lot of things up as well at the same time,” Moeen explained.
Moeen blamed Brook for messing up with Delhi Capitals' (DC) team combination. They roped him in for Rs 6.5 crore in the mega auction. The franchise is yet to announce Brook's replacement.
“I mean, it’s messed his team up, obviously, by pulling out. Any team that loses Harry Brook is messed up a bit, and they’ve got to now rejig everything and stuff like that,"
“Forget him for a second, but if you do pull out, the rule is that you get a ban unless it’s for family reasons or… due to injury or something. If it’s injury or something, it’s different. But I think if you just pull out, then it’s… I kind of agree with the teams. You actually mess a lot of stuff up.
“He’s a top player. They’ve probably picked the team around him, and then all of a sudden, you’re pulling out.”
Rashid backs decision to ban Brook too
Adil Rashid who played in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 alongside Brook agrees with Moeen as well. He does not consider the rule harsh as Brook knew that the rule was in place.
“They actually put that rule in place before, and then this happened. So, you know when you’re going in, this is the rule.
“So when you put your name in, you know if you pull out, this is going to happen. So you know the consequences of it. So I don’t think it’s harsh.
“No, but if you pull out and you have, like you say, an injury or whatever, then I think that’s where something like the rules may differ or change in that way.
“Not just him (Harry Brook), but… But this has been going on for, I don’t know, for a little while, I reckon. Mo (Moeen Ali) has been in the IPL a lot longer, but in the past probably five, ten years, a lot of players have been selected generally and have pulled out. So that’s why they’re trying to stop it that way.”
Rashid was not picked by any of the franchises in the mega auction. The last time he played in the IPL was in the 2023 edition for Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) where Brook made his debut in the cash-rich league.
