With the World Test Championship (WTC) Final approaching, South Africa's head coach Shukri Conrad has set a strict deadline for player availability: despite the BCCI-organized tournament's extension, all members of the national team currently playing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 must return by May 26.

The IPL 2025 season was initially scheduled to end on May 25 but was postponed for nine days due to rising military tensions between India and Pakistan. Now that the situation has stabilized, the league will begin on May 17 and conclude with the final on June 3. But teams getting ready for international commitments are worried about the postponed conclusion, especially South Africa, who will play Australia in the WTC Final at Lord's from June 11 to 15.

"The initial agreement with the IPL and BCCI was that players would return on May 26, following the final originally scheduled for the 25th. Nothing has changed from our perspective; that is the ongoing conversation. As it stands, we want our players back on the 26th," Conrad said about the IPL extension.

The WTC Final squad has already been announced by Cricket South Africa (CSA), and all players who have been chosen are expected to go to England by May 31. IPL-bound stars are anticipated to leave their teams and travel to England early, while non-IPL players will depart South Africa on May 30.

Eight members of the WTC Final squad are still playing in the IPL, and seven of them are with clubs that are still in the running for the playoffs, which further complicates matters. These include Corbin Bosch and Ryan Rickelton (Mumbai Indians), Kagiso Rabada (Gujarat Titans), Tristan Stubbs (Delhi Capitals), Aiden Markram (Lucknow Super Giants), Marco Jansen (Punjab Kings), Lungi Ngidi (Royal Challengers Bengaluru), and Wiaan Mulder (Sunrisers Hyderabad).

These players will now need new approvals to continue after May 25, even though they were originally given No Objection Certificates (NOCs) to play in the IPL till then. It is doubtful that CSA will approve those extensions given the importance of the WTC Final.

With only eight days between the IPL Final and the beginning of the WTC Final, South Africa's management is concentrating on preventing weariness and making sure they have the time to prepare for their big match against Australia. According to a CSA official, "participating in a Test final is the greatest honor there is." "National duty must come first, especially in a competition of this magnitude, even though we recognize the value of franchise cricket."

Now, players like Lungi Ngidi, who came back to India after a short break, are in a vulnerable situation. They might be asked to leave before the tournament's official conclusion if their teams advance to the playoffs or the championship game.

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