After Mitchell Starc & Jake Fraser-McGurk, Delhi Capitals to miss another star batter for IPL 2025 resumption: Reports

Delhi Capitals (DC) continue to suffer multiple blows as another star batter has opted not to return for the remainder of the IPL 2025 season. According to an ESPN Cricinfo report, opener Faf Du Plessis has decided not to return as the IPL 2025 season resumes.

The league was suspended temporarily for a week and it is set for a restart on Saturday, May 17. Several overseas players flew back during the break, leaving teams with player availability issues.

The situation gets worse for Delhi Capitals, who are already set to miss Mitchell Starc and Jake Fraser-McGurk for the rest of the season, who decided not to fly back. Further, Tristan Stubbs, who is in South Africa's World Test Championship (WTC) final squad, will be available only for the remaining league-stage games.

Adding to their woes, the development for Faf Du Plessis not returning comes as another monumental blow, with Jake-Fraser McGurk, also an opener, having already opted out.

Delhi Capitals will now have to look for a replacement as an opener or make do with their Indian batters at the top. Du Plessis played six games this season and scored 168 runs at an average of 28 and a strike-rate of 128.24 with two half-centuries.

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Massive trouble for Delhi Capitals ahead of IPL 2025 playoffs

Delhi Capitals have won six out of their 11 matches so far and are placed fifth with 13 points. With three games remaining, they are in contention to make the playoffs this season.

However, their chances appear to have taken a major blow, with key overseas stars not returning for the remainder of the season. With the likes of Starc, McGurk, and Du Plessis not coming back along with Stubbs staying only till the league stage, the Delhi Capitals face massive trouble.

They need to win at least two of their remaining three games to keep their hopes of qualifying alive. Their next game is against Gujarat Titans (GT) on Sunday, May 18.

It remains to be seen as to who they bring in as replacement players as they are set to miss multiple key overseas stars as the tournament resumes.