Last season’s purple cap winner, Morne Morkel of Delhi Daredevils, is unlikely to play in the opening match against defending champion Kolkata Knight Riders, to be played on Wednesday, owing to domestic team commitments, team sources confirmed on Monday.
Similarly, Knight Riders will be missing its opening batsman Brendon McCullum owing to strained hamstring, according to team sources.
Jacques Kallis, who was also involved in the South Africa domestic T20 tournament, has already arrived. Daredevils, which will be weakened by the absence of Jesse Ryder and Kevin Pietersen, will get a further blow in the absence of Morkel.
