Mitchell Starc makes big-money IPL call as tournament resumes

Sydney: Mitchell Starc has become the highest-profile Australian to opt out of returning to the IPL, with the veteran quick deciding against flying back to India.

His decision means he will have a clear runway into the World Test Championship (WTC) final, avoiding the possibility of playing T20s in India a week before the match.

Starc had always appeared one of the more hesitant players to return to India, after the tournament was postponed last week due to the hosts' conflict with Pakistan.

A "pause" in fighting between the two countries has prompted India's cricket board to resume the league on Saturday night (AEST).

The final of the tournament has been pushed back to June 3, eight days before the WTC final between Australia and South Africa begins at Lord's.Au

stralia's captain Pat Cummins and star batter Travis Head will both return for the resumption of

the IPL, with their duties to finish May 25 as Sunrisers Hyderabad are are guaranteed to miss finals, the Cricket Australia sources said.

Josh Hazlewood will assess a niggling shoulder injury before determining whether to go back for Royal Challengers Bangalore's title tilt.

But players who featured in the abandoned match between Punjab and Delhi in Dharamshala have shown more hesitancy around the decision.

Josh Inglis has held off a decision on his plans to return for the Punjab Kings, while Starc's teammate Jake Fraser-McGurk has also opted out of the tournament.

Xavier Bartlett and Mitch Owen have returned to India to represent Ricky Ponting's Punjab, however.

Starc's wife and Australia captain Alyssa Healy, who also fled home from Dharamshala, described last week as "terrifying".

"There was a lot of anxiety around the Australian group because we didn't have a whole heap of information as to what was going on," Healy said on the Willow Talk podcast.

"That's probably been the really interesting and probably the scariest part of this whole situation, the misinformation.

"Quite close to what's being fought over, but we were assured everything was fine, 'everything is OK, it's miles away, the game will go ahead and everything will be fine'."

Starc's decision not to return is likely to have significant financial ramifications, with players' contracts based on pro-rata payments of games they are available for.

It means if the Delhi Capitals make the finals and feature in three playoff matches, more than a third of his $A2.1 million contract could be taken from him.

Even if his club fails to reach the finals, Starc could be out of pocket approximately $450,000.

There has also been some concern from players that opting out of this year's tournament could

leave them unwanted by IPL franchises in the future.

Starc has traditionally been hesitant to feature in the lucrative T20 competition, opting to prioritise his fitness for Australia and featuring in only four seasons since his first IPL in 2014.