West Indies all-rounder Romario Shepherd and England’s Liam Livingstone are back in India and reunited with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) team, as reported by ESPNcricinfo. They have arrived before the Indian Premier League restarts on May 17, after a brief suspension.
IPL Resumes After One-Week Pause
BCCI had suspended IPL 2025 for a week on May 8 because of the increasing cross-border tension between India and Pakistan. With the situation now normalized, the tournament resumes with a blockbuster match between RCB and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
Shepherd’s Availability In Doubt Post May 29
Shepherd was accompanied on his return to India by West Indies colleagues Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, and KKR mentor Dwayne Bravo. Shepherd’s prospects beyond May 29, however, remain unclear. He is among the West Indies ODI team heading to England for the tour starting on the same date and coinciding with the IPL playoffs. Up to this point, Cricket West Indies has not indicated whether Shepherd will remain at RCB in the knockout stage.
Livingstone Returns; Bethell Already With RCB
Liam Livingstone has also returned to the RCB camp. In contrast to Bethell, who is with England’s team for the white-ball series against the West Indies next month, Livingstone has not been picked for England’s ODI or T20I squads. That implies that he can be available for RCB till the tournament’s conclusion.
ECB’s NOC Valid Until May 25
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) had earlier cleared its cricketers for playing in the IPL till May 25, which was the initial date of the IPL 2025 final. Jacob Bethell, therefore, has not been picked by England for their four-day Test against Zimbabwe from May 29, thus ensuring his continued participation in the IPL — till at least the date set by the ECB.
Also Read: IPL 2025 LIVE Updates: Many Overseas Players Likely To Be Unavailable!!
Lungi Ngidi Joins
LUNGI NGIDI JOINED RCB FOR REMAINDER OF IPL 2025. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/HbvRfUltOM
— Tanuj (@ImTanujSingh) May 15, 2025
RCB Wait for Hazlewood’s Update
The confirmation from overseas pacers — Josh Hazlewood is still awaited. Hazlewood has been named in the Australia squad for the World Test Championship final against Australia in June, throwing his availability during the rest of the IPL season into doubt.
RCB In Strong Position On Points Table
Royal Challengers Bengaluru are having a good run thus far, sitting at second spot on the points table with 16 points off 11 games eight wins and three losses. With the return of the marquee players and the playoffs looming large, the franchise will seek to keep their run going as the league resumes.
(With ANI Inputs)
