Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have roped in New Zealand wicketkeeper-batter Tim Seifert as a replacement for England’s Jacob Bethell, who is set to leave the IPL 2025 ahead of the playoffs stage to join the national side for the upcoming white-ball series against the West Indies. The batting all-rounder will depart from India on May 24, a day after RCB’s league-stage clash against Sunrisers Hyderabad in Lucknow.
Bethell has been named in England’s ODI and T20I squads for their home series against the West Indies. His last appearance for RCB will be on May 23, after which he’ll fly back to the UK to prepare for the first ODI at Edgbaston, Birmingham on May 29. Bethell’s exit will add to the list of players RCB will miss during the playoffs. Notably, Bethell’s England teammate Phil Salt, who is also part of the T20I squad for the same series, will be available till the final on June 3, only if RCB make it that far.
Seifert, who has previously had the experience of playing for Delhi Capitals and Kolkata Knight Riders, and has played just three matches across two seasons, scoring 26 runs. The Kiwi batter has played 66 T20Is, scoring 1,540 runs at a strike rate of 142.85, and has also featured in over 262 T20 matches globally. Seifert has been signed for INR 2 crore and is expected to fit in RCB’s middle order if required.
Meanwhile, South African pacer Lungisani Ngidi will also be unavailable for the playoffs as he joins South Africa’s squad for preparations ahead of the World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia, beginning June 11 at the Lord’s. The franchise had named Blessing Muzarabani of Zimbabwe as Ngidi’s replacement, effective from May 26. Furthermore, RCB’s ace pacer Josh Hazlewood has been named in Australia’s WTC Final squad, but hasn’t yet arrived in India. The side hasn’t yet official announced about his unavailability.
The Rajat Patidar-led side are in a strong position, with 17 points from 12 matches, and sits at second place. Having already qualified for the playoffs, the side would wish to win their remaining two fixtures, against Sunrisers Hyderabad (May 23) and Lucknow Super Giants (May 27), for a top-two finish, giving them a direct shot at the final through Qualifier 1.
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