In-form PBKS all-rounder yet to join squad ahead of IPL 2025 due to personal reasons

Punjab Kings (PBKS) all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai's arrival in India to join the squad has been delayed due to personal reasons. The Afghanistan International is expected to report on March 20, just a couple of days before the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 edition kickstarts in Kolkata.

Omarzai has been on the rise in white-ball cricket, bagging the ICC ODI Player of the Year award for the Year 2024. He continued his fine run of form in the international circuit into the 2025 Champions Trophy, where he had a memorable campaign, including a five-wicket haul in the famous win over England in Lahore.

The all-rounder was roped in by the Punjab Kings (PBKS) during the IPL 2025 mega-auction after being released by the Gujarat Titans (GT). The IPL 2014 finalists made the winning bid of INR 2.4 crore to secure his services.

"Omarzai has some issue at home. He will be in India by March 20. The rest of the foreign players start trickling in from today," an IPL source told PTI.

A section of PBKS players were involved in a three-day training camp at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) Stadium in Dharamshala, which began on March 13. Prominent players like Yuzvendra Chahal, Shashank Singh, and Prabhsimran Singh were part of the group working under head coach Ricky Ponting as well as the rest of the coaching staff.

Newly appointed PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer joined the squad on Monday, March 17. The squad will train at their home venue in Mullanpur in the lead-up to their first match.

PBKS to face GT on March 25 in Ahmedabad to begin their 2025 IPL campaign

The revamped Punjab Kings with a new captain and head coach will kickstart their 2025 IPL campaign with an away contest against the Gujarat Titans (GT). The two sides will face each other at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Tuesday, March 25.

Omarzai is expected to compete with other prominent all-rounders in the squad like Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell and Marco Jansen for a place in the playing XI. The in-form Afghanistan all-rounder had a decent maiden season in 2024, bagging four wickets in seven appearances with an economy rate of 8.86.