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6 days ago
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IPL 2025 Eliminator: Jonny Bairstow will likely partner Rohit Sharma up top against the Gujarat Titans. (MI)
After being announced as one of three potential replacement signings for the Mumbai Indians even before the IPL 2025 Playoffs line-up was announced, England wicketkeeper-batter Jonny Bairstow could be immediately up for action in the Eliminator match against the Gujarat Titans in New Chandigarh on Friday.
Replacing his English compatriot, Will Jacks, Bairstow joined the Mumbai Indians for INR 5.25 crore solely for the Playoffs matches. Bairstow is, however, likely to replace South Africa opener Ryan Rickelton in the MI XI as the wicket-keeping option for the remainder of their campaign.
“It’s not like MI are at odds to whether to play them or not play them. Bairstow’s there. He’s an IPL proven player. He’s come in with this opportunity in some very good form for Yorkshire,” former Australia all-rounder Tom Moody said on ESPNcricinfo while factoring in the Englishman’s addition.
Jonny Bairstow IPL record
Bairstow is aiming for his first IPL match in three years since his last stint in the league. Despite being a part of the Punjab Kings squad in 2023 and 2024, Bairstow did not get a single game. The 35-year-old, however, has established a respectable record in the IPL, mainly on the back of a strong profile with the Sunrisers Hyderabad between 2019 and 2021.
In 10 games in the 2019 season, Bairstow whipped up 445 runs for SRH, laced with a century and two fifties. Bairstow aggregated runs at 157.14 strike rate that season, his best across four editions in the league. Overall, Bairstow has accumulated 1291 runs in 39 IPL matches, averaging 35.86 and striking at 142.65 per 100 deliveries.
Bairstow is likely to team up with Rohit Sharma, who himself has endured a streaky patch in the league this season. MI’s top-order woes have been masked largely by the brilliance of Suryakumar Yadav who has crossed 25-plus runs in every innings and broke Sachin Tendulkar’s record for most runs for MI in an IPL season.
Bairstow last featured in a T20 with the Joburg Super Kings in February. The 35-year-old registered 232 runs in 10 innings for JSK with a solitary half-century in the 2025 edition.
English (US) ·