KARACHI: Right-arm England fast bowler Richard Gleeson, who represented Islamabad United in Pakistan Super League (PSL) 11, has signed with defending champions Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) for the remainder of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026.
Gleeson represented the three-time champions in nine matches, during which he took 12 wickets at a remarkable average of 18.83 and an economy rate of 7.13.
After finishing eighth in the list of leading wicket takers in the 11th edition of the marquee league, Gleeson caught the attention of IPL champions RCB, who brought him in for Rs 1.6 crore.
Notably, Gleeson has been included in the RCB squad to replace Sri Lankan Nuwan Dushara, who was unable to make the squad after being denied a no-obligation certificate (NOC) by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC).
Tushara, who has been part of the IPL title-winning RCB team since 2025, has been retained by the franchise for the current edition but could not get the NOC from the SLC as he did not meet the required fitness standards set by the cricket board for players aspiring to participate in overseas leagues.
In response, the fast bowler filed a case against SLC but withdrew it after a week, while also issuing a written apology.
Meanwhile, the upcoming IPL series will be Gleeson’s third as he represented Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Mumbai Indians in the 2024 and 2025 editions respectively.
However, the 38-year-old fast bowler managed to play only three matches across the two editions and took just two wickets at a dismal average of 55.