Allah Ghazanfar Ruled Out of IPL 2025: Who Can Mumbai Indians Sign as Afghanistan Spinner's Replacement?

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Mumbai Indians will miss the services of Allah Ghazanfar in the upcoming Indian Premier League - IPL 2025 after the Afghanistan spin sensation was ruled out of action for the next four months with fracture in the lower back.

The five-time champions MI had believed they landed their mystery element in the form of Ghazanfar, but "a fracture in the L4 vertebra, specifically in the left pars interarticularis" has sidelined the younster.

Following a great run in 2024, Ghazanfar had earned a call up to the Champions Trophy 2025 squad, joining senior pro Rashid Khan as one of the spin options for Afghanistan. His performance also saw him land a Rs 4.80 Crore IPL contract from Mumbai Indians. However, both MI and Afghanistan suffered a blow ahead of crucial months.

The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) on Wednesday (February 12) finalised their squad for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, with injured teenage mystery spinner being replaced by left-armer Nangyal Kharoti, who was among the reserves for the tournament.

Having missed out on a top qualifty spinner in the recent seasons, Mumbai Indians beat off competition from Kolkata Knight Riders to put in the winning bid for Ghazanfar at the IPL Mega Auction last year in November. But, the injury means MI will have to look at external options to replace the young spinner.

Apart from Ghazanfar, Mumbai Indians also brought in New Zealand's new whiteball captain and spin all-rounder Mitchell Santner into the side during the two-day auction, while they also roped in Karn Sharma as the other recognised spin option.

With Santner and Sharma bringing the traditional spin to the table, MI will still look to bring in some bowler that brings the mystery element in the coming days. But they could face competition from a few other teams who have also lost players through injury.

Who can Mumbai Indians sign as Allah Ghazanfar's replacement for IPL 2025?

There are several choices available from the unsold pool of the IPL Mega Auction, but only a few qualify as mystery spinners and only a handful come in with a decent repute in whiteball game. Mumbai Indians may have to look at Afghanistan again to land their replacement.

Ghazanfar's replacement in the Afghanistan Champions Trophy squad, Nangyal Kharoti will be one such option with his compatriot and much more experienced Mujeeb Ur Rahman being the other choice. Also, the likes of Adil Rashid, Tabraiz Shamsi and Keshav Maharaj are available should MI prefer a more experienced overseas option.

With pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah also a doubtful starter, MI may look at an overseas pacer with a possible local spin option in Tanush Kotian and Shams Mulani to fill in the spinners void in the squad. The franchise is likely to keep their replacement signings waiting until the final week before the season begins on March 21.