Moeen Ali ditches IPL for Pakistan Super League:Former RCB captain Faf du Plessis had also opted to play in Pak next year

After Faf du Plessis, now former England all-rounder Moeen Ali has also decided not to participate in IPL 2026 and instead play in PSL 2026. He is the second foreign player to make such a decision within four days. Earlier on November 29, former RCB captain Faf du Plessis had withdrawn his name from the IPL and announced his participation in the PSL. The IPL mini-auction is scheduled to take place on December 16 in Abu Dhabi. Moeen Ali’s announcement on social media Moeen Ali announced his decision on social media, writing, ‘I am very excited to join the new phase of PSL. This league is one of the top T20 leagues in the world. Every team has world-class players. Playing in Pakistan always gives a fantastic experience. The standard of cricket is excellent and the passion of the spectators forces you to give your 100%. Insha’Allah, I hope for another memorable experience.’ KKR had released him In the IPL 2025 mega auction, Kolkata Knight Riders had bought Moeen at a base price of 2 crore. Before IPL 2026, KKR released 9 players, including Moeen.
His performance in the 2025 season was ordinary. He scored only 6 runs and took 6 wickets in 6 matches. Part of IPL since 2018 Moeen Ali has been playing in the IPL since 2018 and has been a part of teams like RCB, CSK, and KKR. So far, he has played 73 IPL matches, scoring 1167 runs and taking 41 wickets. He also became an IPL champion twice with CSK in 2021 and 2023. Faf du Plessis had also announced his departure from IPL Before Moeen Ali, former South African captain Faf du Plessis had announced on November 29 that he would not put his name in the IPL 2026 auction. Faf played 154 matches in 14 seasons and scored 4,773 runs (average 35.10, strike rate 135.79). He played for CSK, Rising Pune Supergiant, RCB, and Delhi Capitals. In 2025, his performance for Delhi Capitals was affected by injury, in which he could only score 202 runs in 9 matches. On social media, he wrote – ‘After 14 seasons, I am not putting my name in the auction this time. India will always hold a special place in my heart… This is not goodbye.’