Australian wicketkeeper-batter Josh Inglis is poised to finally join the Lucknow Super Giants for the 2026 Indian Premier League season. Inglis has been unavailable for the first half of the season, but his arrival will undoubtedly be a significant boost for the franchise led by Rishabh Pant.
Inglis has been sidelined since early March, when he took on the gloves for Western Australia against Queensland in a Sheffield Shield match following Australia’s early exit from the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka. The wicketkeeper-batter was unavailable for the early part of the IPL season due to his planned wedding. He ultimately tied the knot on April 18.
Despite knowing he might miss half the season, the Lucknow Super Giants shelled out 8.6 crore for his services, considering his impressive form. Inglis was a crucial factor in Punjab Kings making it to the final in the 2025 IPL season, scoring 278 runs in 11 matches at a strike rate of almost 163. Notably, it was his first-ever IPL season. However, his unavailability for part of the 2026 season was cited as a possible reason why Punjab Kings released him before the auction.
Once Inglis takes to the field in LSG colours, it will be his second team in as many IPL seasons. He will be unable to join LSG immediately and is only expected to be available from the match against the Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on May 4, according to ESPNCricinfo. This means that Inglis could play only up to LSG’s last six league-stage matches.
His arrival will be a key factor for the Rishabh Pant-led franchise as both Pant and Nicholas Pooran – LSG’s primary wicketkeepers – are struggling for form. It could also mean that LSG would take a second look at their overseas options. Currently, Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, and Nicholas Pooran make up LSG’s foreign contingent with South Africa spinner George Linde taking over the responsibility of slow bowling
