Joe Root opts out of IPL 2024

Root, who was part of Rajasthan Royals' squad in the 2023 tournament, played just three times and batted once in his first taste of the competition

Nick Friend | 26/11/2023 at 10:04

Joe Root has followed the lead of England Test captain Ben Stokes in withdrawing from next year's Indian Premier League.

Root, who was part of Rajasthan Royals' squad in the 2023 tournament, played just three times and batted once in his first taste of the IPL.

Kumar Sangakkara, who is Rajasthan's director of cricket, insisted that Royals had "respect" for Root's decision, which came a fortnight after England's final World Cup fixture against Pakistan.

Root was subsequently left out of England's white-ball tour of the Caribbean, with managing director of men's cricket Rob Key suggesting that the former Test skipper was in need of a break, having played nonstop since a tour of Pakistan last winter was followed by a stint in the ILT20 and a winter tour of New Zealand.

"During our retention conversations, Joe informed us of his decision to not take part in IPL 2024," said Sangakkara. "Even in a short span of time, Joe was able to create such a positive impact on the franchise and the players around him.

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^{Root enjoyed his time at Rajasthan Royals (Indranil Mukherjee/AFP via Getty Images)}

"His energy around the group and the experience he brought to the Royals will be missed. We respect his decision totally and wish him success in everything he does."

A Royals statement added: "The 32-year-old's addition to the Royals squad brought in plenty of depth and experience, which served as a learning experience for a lot of youngsters in the side like Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag, Yashasvi Jaiswal in the team.

"His camaraderie with his England teammate Jos Buttler and his bonding with Yuzvendra Chahal was also one of the memorable highlights of the former England Test skipper's stint with the Royals."