Delhi Capitals Face Severe Backlash after signing Mustafizur Rahman

Amid multiple player-related challenges, the Delhi Capitals (DC) are now facing a new criticism by the fans as the IPL 2025 resumes. Notably, several fans are insisting on boycotting the team as they have signed a Bangladeshi player as a replacement for the young Australian cricketer amid the ongoing India-Pakistan tensions.

The name of the Bangladeshi player is Mustafizur Rahman, who has been signed for Jake Fraser-McGurk for the rest of the IPL 2025 season. Australia batter Jake Fraser-McGurk pulled out of the IPL 2025 season as he refused to come back for the remainder of the tournament. He is the second overseas player to leave after Chennai Super Kings’ all-rounder Jamie Overton.

The IPL is set to resume on May 17 after a one-week suspension. Fraser-McGurk was signed by Delhi Capitals (DC) for a huge sum of INR 9 crore at the mega auction. However, he has now informed DC that he will not rejoin the team for their remaining matches. Mustafizur Rahman has been picked to join the Capitals for INR 6 crore.

Reason For Boycott Delhi Capitals

The fans are urging other fans to boycott the Delhi Capitals by calling them ‘Anti-National’ as Bangladesh has been proactively supporting Pakistan amidst the India-Pakistan war, which has been in the news in recent times. It has raised some serious geopolitical tensions with India. The move of signing a Bangladesh player in IPL has irked the fans, and no other player apart from Mustafizur has been a part of this IPL season so far.

The trend of ‘Boycott Delhi Capitals’ has been going around on social media due to Mustafizur's nationality. The fans across India have been raising their voice against the signing of a Bangladeshi national. Recently, the tensions between India and Bangladesh have gone from bad to worse after the ouster of Sheikh Hasina from power.

Mustafizur has previously played for DC in the 2022 and 2023 seasons. He picked up nine wickets in total during those two years. However, the trend of ‘Boycott Delhi Capitals’ has come as a major roadblock for the franchise.

BCB Yet to Assign NOC to Mustafizur Rahman

Mustafizur Rahman is currently in Dubai with the Bangladesh team for a T20I series. After this, the team is scheduled to travel to Pakistan for another series. The schedule for these matches hasn't been finalised yet, but they are likely to clash with the remaining IPL games. Since he is a key member of Bangladesh's pace attack, his availability will be crucial for his nation.As a result, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has made it clear that Mustafizur has not yet received a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) to join the IPL. Without this clearance, he cannot play in India. A BCB official spoke to Cricbuzz and claimed that the board has to treat all the players equally, as some of the players in the PSL are also part of the upcoming T20I series.

“We are not saying we won’t let Mustafizur play. But he also has a national duty to fulfill. If we release him, then players who left the Pakistan Super League (PSL) like Rishad Hossain and Nahid Rana may question why we are not letting them go too,” the BCB official was quoted as saying.

When can Mustafizur Rahman join Delhi Capitals?

Mustafizur is expected to miss DC’s match against Gujarat Titans on Saturday in Delhi. He might join the squad only after Monday. He is believed to be a key player for the Capitals in the potential absence of Mitchell Starc, whose availability is not yet confirmed. It makes Mustafizur's role even more crucial in the DC set-up. DC’s final two league games are against Mumbai Indians on May 21 and Punjab Kings on May 24, respectively.

The left-arm quick has played 57 matches in which he has picked up 61 wickets at an average of 28.89 and an impressive economy rate of 8.14. He was signed by Delhi Capitals for INR 6 crore for the last phase of the IPL 2025 edition. It remains to be seen whether he is able to join the Capitals squad or not because of the voices to boycott Delhi Capitals.