Why Is Nathan Ellis Not Playing in IPL 2026?

Why is Nathan Ellis not playing in IPL 2026? The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) pacer has been ruled out of the tournament due to injury.

Why is Nathan Ellis not playing in IPL 2026?

Just one week before the start of IPL 2026, Chennai Super Kings suffered a major setback as their overseas pacer Nathan Ellis was ruled out of the entire season due to a hamstring injury he suffered during training.

The Australian seamer recently played for Tasmania in the Australian One-Day Cup final in Hobart, taking 2/26 in five overs, although his team lost to New South Wales. It is not clear exactly when or how the injury occurred.

Earlier in January, Ellis had also struggled with a hamstring problem that kept him out of the Big Bash League knockout stage, where he was leading the Hobart Hurricanes.

This injury explains why is Nathan Ellis not playing in IPL 2026.

Nathan Ellis was in good form with the ball and could be a big loss for CSK this season. In the recently concluded T20 World Cup 2026, he took five wickets in four matches. Before that, in the BBL 2025-26 playing for Hobart Hurricanes, he took 14 wickets in nine innings.

CSK still have options like Matt Henry, Jamie Overton, and Zak Foulkes among their overseas pacers. If Nathan Ellis had been fit, he was expected to be in the playing XI from the start.

Spencer Johnson was named as the replacement for Nathan Ellis.

Nathan Ellis in IPL

In the IPL, he has played for two franchises. He made his debut in 2021 for Punjab Kings and stayed there until 2024. During that time, he played 16 matches for them and took 18 wickets. In the IPL 2025 auction, he was picked by CSK for INR 2 crore. He played only one match that season but was still retained by the franchise at the same price for the upcoming season.

Nathan Ellis is a T20 specialist pacer with many variations, which CSK will miss this season.

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