Cricket Australia has backed the players' individual decisions as they face tough coming weeks ahead of the World Test Championship (WTC) final against South Africa.

In a statement released on Tuesday (May 13), the apex body of Australian Cricket vows to back the individual decisions as players are contract-tied with the Indian Premier League (IPL). In case the players included in the WTC final squad commit to playing in the IPL 2025 and reach the final, they will have only one week to prepare, including travel.

CA to support players' decision

"Cricket Australia will support players in their individual decisions whether to return to India or not," CA said in a statement.

"Team management will work through the preparation implications for the World Test Championship final for those players who choose to play in the remaining IPL matches.

"We are maintaining communication with the Australian Government and BCCI around security arrangements and safety."

The IPL Playoffs are scheduled to start from May 29, with the final taking place on June 3.

On Tuesday, Cricket Australia announced the squad for the WTC final with the likes of Pat Cummins, Travis Head and Mitchell Starc still involved. While Cummins and Head (part of the WTC final squad) won't play in the IPL 2025 Playoffs and final, they will have a decision in hand with only three more games remaining in the league season for SunRisers Hyderabad.

However, that won't be the case for Josh Hazlewood, Josh Inglis and Mitchell Starc as their IPL sides are destined to play in the Playoffs. These players are also named in the 15-man squad for the WTC final by Cricket Australia.

So if any player from the trio features in the IPL final, they will have only seven days to prepare before the WTC summit clash starts at Lord's Cricket Ground against South Africa.