In IPL 2025, Mumbai Indians have included Jonny Bairstow and Richard Gleeson in the squad, as Will Jacks and Ryan Rickelton are not returning to India. Bairstow, who has not played for England for a long time, can prove to be crucial for Mumbai. At the same time, Gleeson will not be able to play the initial T20 Blast match due to his white-ball contract.
Will Jacks and Ryan Rickelton will not be returning to India after the return of IPL 2025, so they will be replaced by Jonny Bairstow and Richard Gleeson temporarily in the Mumbai Indians team. Jacks has returned to India ahead of Mumbai's last two group-stage fixtures but will not be available for the final stages of the season due to international duty as the ODI series against England is clashing with the rescheduled knockout stage.
Jonny Bairstow was not sold in the auction for IPL 2025 and has not played any match in any format for England since June 2024. He will come to India after captaining Yorkshire against Surrey at the Oval in the County Championship this week and if he gets a good IPL deal he will probably miss a Championship match and two T20 Blast matches.
Bairstow has played 50 matches in five seasons of IPL. From 2019 to 2021, he represented Sunrisers Hyderabad and has also played for Punjab Kings. His record in the league has been fantastic. He has an average of 34.54 and a strike rate of 144.45. Bairstow has also scored two centuries in the IPL, one of them came during a spectacular run chase at the Eden Gardens last year.
Will Jacks has been the main player for Mumbai this season. He has played 11 of the first 12 matches in the group stage. He has scored 195 runs in 9 innings and has also taken five wickets with the bowling. Rickelton will also not play in the playoffs along with Corbin Bosch after Cricket South Africa has asked its World Test Championship final squad members to return home by May 27. Rickelton is Mumbai's second-highest run-scorer this season after Rohit Sharma. He has scored 336 runs in 12 innings with an average of 30.54 and a strike rate of 153.42.
Gleeson made his IPL debut last year and played two matches as a replacement player for Chennai Super Kings. He is currently on a white-ball contract with his county Warwickshire and if his deal with Mumbai is finalized, he will not be able to play in his first two T20 Blast matches.