Sri Lankan wicketkeeper-batter Kusal Mendis will be joining the forces with Gujarat Titans for remainder of the IPL 2025 post the resumption of the league. According to reports, Mendis will be replacing Jos Buttler in the squad, in what comes as a tremendous blow to the Gujarat Titans.
An official announcement where the Sri Lankan stumper-batter replaces his English counterpart in the Shubman Gill-led side will be made shortly.
According to NewsWire, the report has stated that Buttler has conveyed GT regarding his unavailability for the franchise for the rest of the season following the extension of the league’s scheduling, which is coinciding with England’s home series against the West Indies. Notably, England are to host the Caribbean side for three ODIs and as many T20Is, and the former English skipper has been included in both the squads.
Buttler was removed as The Three Lions’ skipper right after the recent series loss to India and an early exit from the Champions Trophy weeks later. Young batter Harry Brook has taken over the captaincy reins from the stumper-batter and now Buttler will play as a specialist in the side. Prioritizing national commitments over IPL duties with GT, the seasoned campaigner is likely to return home and feature in bilateral series instead.
The departure of Buttler will definitely come as terrible news for the franchise, as they are not only on the brink of advancing to the Playoffs, but also the kind of form their No. 3 batter was in. In 11 games that they played, Buttler contributed with 500 runs at an unbelievable average of 71.42 and a staggering strike-rate of 163.93. He has also scored five half-centuries, including his best score of 97*, which helped GT win a last-over thriller.
He also formed a deadly combination at the top of the order alongside openers Shubman Gill and B Sai Sudharsan. The troika did the bulk of the scoring for the Ahmedabad-based franchise and in case he misses out the remainder of the season, it will be a major miss for the side. Mendis, though, boasts a fantastic T20 record as well, and can thrash oppositions at will.
