On Saturday, England fast bowler Liam Plunkett has been roped in by the Delhi Daredevils as a replacement for the injured South African fast bowler Kagiso Rabada for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018. Plunkett, who has featured in 13 Tests, 65 ODIs and 15 T20Is for England so far, will be experiencing his first stint in the IPL. He was picked from the Registered Available Player Pool (RAPP) list.

Earlier, Proteas seamer Rabada was ruled out of the IPL due to a lower-back stress reaction. Reportedly he was sidelined for up to 3 months. The 22-year old had complained of discomfort during the fourth and final Test in Johannesburg, bowling only eight overs in Australia’s second innings. Commenting on Rabada’s injury, Proteas team manager Mohammed Moosajee told “Kagiso has been diagnosed with a lower back stress reaction which will rule him out of cricket action for up to three months. He will need a month’s break from all physical activity before commencing with a rehabilitation programme to get him ready for the series against Sri Lanka in July.”

He was retained by the Daredevils using the Right To Match Card for INR 4.2 crores. A couple of weeks before his injury Rabada had raised concerns over workload after representing his country in 10 Tests and 8 ODIs throughout the African summer.