Behrendorff out of IPL after freak training mishap

Jason Behrendorff won't get a chance to push his case for a T20 World Cup spot in the Indian Premier League after suffering a broken leg in a freak accident at training.

Behrendorff was ruled of the Mumbai Indians 2024 IPL campaign overnight, replaced by English left-armer Luke Wood who was part of the Melbourne Stars squad in KFC BBL|12.

Australia's men's T20 player of the year suffered the injury when he was struck on the leg while batting in the nets at the WACA Ground last week before leaving for India, cricket.com.au has confirmed after it was first reported by Cricinfo.

The ball missed the 33-year-old's pad, hitting him on the left leg above the ankle.

"Unfortunately, there was a freak accident at training last week which resulted in my leg being broken," the left-armer posted on Instagram. "It wasn't anyone's fault, just a very unlucky incident.

"I have loved being part of the MI Family and am absolutely gutted to be missing this year's IPL … hopefully I'll have the opportunity to be back next year."

This season would have been Behrendorff's third at the Indians after being purchased for A$135,000 in the 2022 auction. He also played five matches in 2019.

The West Australian was the franchise's equal second leading wicket-taker in 2023, finishing the tournament with 14 wickets and an economy of 9.21 from his 12 matches.

Although left out of the recent T20 series in New Zealand, Behrendorff has also impressed with his performances for Australia in the shortest format over the past 12 months after breaking back into national side last September.

He was crowned nation's best men's T20 player for the past year at the Australian Cricket Awards in January for his eight wickets in four matches and he was the standout bowler during a high-scoring 4-1 series loss to India last December, claiming the remarkable figures of 1-12 from four overs as India amassed 3-222 in the third T20.

Behrendorff was again one of the BBL's standout bowlers this summer with 16 wickets at 15.87 in 10 games for the Perth Scorchers but he struggled for effectiveness in Australia's series against the West Indies that followed, finishing with three wickets and an economy of 11.27 in the three matches.

But a strong season for the Indians would have still had him in the frame for a World Cup call up in the Caribbean in June with national selection chair George Bailey previously indicating IPL performances would be considered when selecting the Aussie squad.

He's now in a race against time to prove his fitness to be considered as a back-up option for Mitchell Starc, with Cricinfo reporting that although he has avoided surgery, he faces a rehab period of around eight weeks.

Australians in IPL 2024

Delhi Capitals: Mitch Marsh (A$1.2m), David Warner (A$1.16m), Jhye Richardson (A$890,000), Jake Fraser-McGurk (A$92,000)

Gujarat Titans: Spencer Johnson (A$1.78m), Matthew Wade (A$446,000)

Kolkata Knight Riders: Mitchell Starc (A$4.43m)

Lucknow Super Giants: Marcus Stoinis (A$1.7m), Ashton Turner (A$178,000)

Mumbai Indians: Tim David (A$1.53m), Jason Behrendorff (A$135,000)

Punjab Kings: Nathan Ellis (A$135,000)

Rajasthan Royals: Adam Zampa (A$270,000)

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Cameron Green (A$3.15m), Glenn Maxwell (A$2m)

Sunrisers Hyderabad: Pat Cummins (A$3.67m), Travis Head (A$1.2m)

*Prices in AUD, conversions correct at time of auction