Mitchell Owen has been named as the replacement for the injured Glenn Maxwell in the Punjab Kings (PBKS) squad in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025.
Maxwell has been ruled out for the rest of the tournament due to a fractured finger earlier this week. Owen, who's currently plying his trade in the PSL, was picked by PBKS for INR 3 crores.
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Punjab currently sit 4th in the table with 13 points to their name, as they look to secure qualification into the playoffs in their remaining matches of the tournament.
Due to Maxwell's unfortunate injury at the business end of the tournament, PBKS were compelled to bring in a replacement and that's why they roped in the BBL record-maker.
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When can Owen join the PBKS squad?
Owen is currently playing for the Peshawar Zalmi in the Pakistan Super League, which is running parallelly with the Indian Premier League 2025.
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According to ESPNcricinfo, the Australian batter can only join the PBKS squad after Zalmi's season in the PSL comes to end. Zalmi are fifth in the table as of now and will play their final group-stage match against the Lahore Qalandars on Friday, May 9, in case they fail to qualify for the playoffs.
In the event of Zalmi qualifying for the playoffs, Owen has to stay back in Pakistan till Sunday, May 18, two days after PBKS' last group-stage game against the Rajasthan Royals (RR).
If Punjab qualify for the last four-stage, Owen will be available for selection in that case as his commitments with the Pakistan-based franchise would be over till then. Owen is eligible for playing in the tournament as a replacement as he had registered for the mega-auction in Jeddah last year, but didn't make the final shortlist.
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The 23-year-old batter from Tasmania was the top-scorer in the recently concluded Big Bash League (BBL), where he played a major part in Hobart Hurricanes' title-winning campaign.
Owen scored a massive 108 in the final against the Sydney Thunder to help the Hurricanes lift their first BBL title. Ricky Ponting, who is currently the head coach of the Punjab Kings, had previously followed Owen closely while working as the head of strategy for the Hurricanes in the BBL.