“We were informed by him 45 minutes before the deadline” - PBKS co-owner slams Josh Inglis for his ‘unprofessional behaviour’

Punjab Kings (PBKS) co-owner Ness Wadia has slammed Australian keeper-batter Josh Inglis for informing the franchise about his limited availability for IPL 2026 just 45 minutes before the retentions deadline.

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Wadia further asserted that Inglis' late call disrupted the franchise's planning and raised questions over player professionalism. For the unversed, Inglis is expected to get married during the IPL 2026 season, and he would be available for only a few games.

Notably, after going initially unsold in the IPL 2026 mini-auction, the keeper-batter was sold to the Lucknow Super Giants for INR 8.6 Crore. LSG has revealed the reason behind his signing as a long-term option.

"We didn't really let go of Josh. I mean, Josh unfortunately, sadly, only told us at the last minute, which was not very fair, given that he had been with us for a while. I think everyone knew when the retention was coming, and we were informed by him 45 minutes before the deadline that he was getting married and needed time to relax and recuperate. He said he was going to be available only for a couple of weeks,” Wadia told Sportstar.

"We told him he should have informed us earlier. I don't think it was very professional of him. I don't think it is very professional of anyone if they know there is a deadline. You can't call someone 45 minutes before and say, 'Hey, I'm not coming,' especially when he knew that we were retaining him," he added.

"But I wish him all the best. He is a good player and I am sure he will do well for Australia. And let's see whether he plays in the IPL or not. I wish him all the best because he is a fellow human being. But the manner in which he behaved was not very professional," he concluded.

On the other hand, speaking exclusively to ABC Sport, the former PBKS keeper-batter has confirmed that he will not be available for the entire IPL 2026 season, adding that he watched the initial part of the auction when he got unsold.

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"Well, I sort of watched a lot of it [the IPL auction] and I was pushed back in the pecking order. I don't have full availability this year. I'm getting married in early April, so I didn't really expect to go, to be honest," Inglis said.

"I sort of saw my name go by unsold. The first one I was like, 'alright, stuff this, I'm going to bed' and I needed to switch on for tomorrow [the Ashes]. Then I woke up to the news. I didn't know until I'd seen a few messages this morning,” Inglis concluded.

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