Mustafizur Rahman likely to miss CSK's clash against SRH: Reports

Mustafizur Rahman is likely to miss Chennai Super Kings' (CSK) next match against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on April 5 (Friday) according to reports. The Bangladesh pacer has flown back home to process his US visa ahead of the T20 World Cup set to be held in the US and the Caribbean from June 1.

With seven wickets in three matches, Mustafizur is currently the leading wicket-taker in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. He has already flown to Dhaka, and his availability for CSK's home fixture against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on April 8 (Monday) will depend on when he gets his passport back from the embassy.

"Mustafizur arrived last night from the IPL for US visa purposes for the upcoming T20 World Cup. He will be giving his fingerprint at the US embassy tomorrow [April 4] and later will travel back to India to join Chennai," BCB cricket operation chairman Jalal Yunus confirmed to Cricbuzz on April 3 (Wednesday).

The Bangladesh fast bowler started off IPL 2024 with a four-wicket haul against Royal Challengers Bengaluru RCB in the season opener on March 22. He finished with 2/30 against Gujarat Titans (GT), but in the next game against Delhi Capitals (DC), he conceded 47 runs in his four overs, picking up just one wicket.

Mustafizur is expected to play in the IPL till the end of April as he is expected to join Bangladesh ahead of their five-match T20 International (T20I) series against Zimbabwe, starting May 3. "His NOC for the tournament runs till April 30, and we are expecting him to be back after that from IPL," Yunus added.

CSK are currently third in the points table with two wins from three matches so far. The defending champions have plenty of options from the bench to pick from during the left-arm seamer's absence, including Mukesh Choudhary and Rajvardhan Hangargekar.