Mitchell Starc on why he didn't return to Delhi Capitals upon IPL 2025 resumption

Pro pacer Mitchell Starc opened up on his decision to not play the remainder of the IPL 2025 with the Delhi Capitals, following the tensions between India and Pakistan after the Operation Sindoor. Ahead of the WTC Final 2025, Starc claimed that his safety became his priority over his participation in the remainder of the season.

The left-arm pacer was not confident of safety for the players before the match between Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals, which was halted midway due to security concerns. He said the safety of the players was also the reason he opted himself out of the Champions Trophy 2025. The left-arm pacer said that a shortage of ample time to prepare for the WTC Final meant he focused on it.

"I’m comfortable with my decision and how I felt about the whole situation and how it was handled. That’s why I made my decision post-that, and my focus changed to red-ball cricket for about a week prior to coming over here (the UK). Time will tell with repercussions or how it looks with guys that didn’t return," Starc said as quoted by The Age.

"But I’ve had my questions and concerns leading into that game, and obviously we saw what happened, which played a part in my decision. There was a little bit of that to my decision around the Champions Trophy (in Pakistan) and then once the tournament (IPL) was delayed, you start to think about guys’ preparation for the Test match," Starc added.

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It was a very individual decision: Starc

The Australian pacer claimed that he and Jake Fraser-McGurk chose to not stay in Punjab after the match between PBKS and DC was stopped, while others were escorted to Delhi in a special Vande Bharat Train. He claimed it to be a personal decision and was ready to face repurcussions for the same.

"Things were handled differently for different players and different teams, the guys up in Dharamsala, the Punjab guys were part of that, and while both teams had similar experiences up there, all those guys returned for Punjab, and Jake (Fraser-McGurk) and I chose not to. It was a very individual decision, and I’m happy to live with whatever comes of that," Starc added.

The star pacer confirmed that he neither had anything against the Capitals, nor chose to play for Australia over them. The veteran pacer confirmed that there was never an instance where he committed himself for a team and left in the middle, unless circumstances like those during the IPL 2025.

"I’m still heavily committed to the Delhi group, and I’m not someone that’s gone into tournaments and pulled out after being picked up in an auction or whatever that looks like. These are different circumstances," Starc added in his statement.

Notably, Mustafizur Rahman replaced Starc in DC's squad for the remainder of the tournament, as the Axar Patel-led side narrowly missed out on Playoffs' qualification.