Batting legend Sunil Gavaskar has strongly criticized international players for partial availability in IPL 2026, slamming them for taking Indian hospitality for granted.

In his column for Sportstar, Gavaskar urged franchises to "get tough" and drop players who skip early matches. He noted that franchises often accommodate these players' families at no cost, calling the late arrivals disrespectful to the tournament.

Gavaskar’s criticism follows reports of Australian pace trio Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, and Josh Hazlewood delaying their arrival due to workload management. New Zealand speedster Lockie Ferguson will also miss the initial matches to spend time with his family following the birth of his first child.

“There is also the usual taking the franchise for granted issue with some overseas players, who are not going to be available for non-injury and personal reasons," Gavaskar wrote.

“The owners of the franchises go out of their way to accommodate their players often paying for families to come and spend time with the players at no cost to the millionaire players, mind you. It’s the Indian way and hospitality, which often is misunderstood as a right by some and who then try and take advantage of the situation," he added.

Gavaskar argued that late arrivals ruin the structural planning of the teams and advised franchise owners to stop allowing players to treat the league as a matter of convenience.

“We are already hearing about some players who will not be available for a variety of reasons, none of which were informed before they were selected by the franchise. Unless franchise owners start to get tough and drop these players, they will find themselves being hampered in their efforts to win the title. All the planning in forming the squad which they believe can help them win, goes out of the window when players decide to come whenever they want," he remarked.

The 19th edition of IPL is all set to get underway on March 28, with the RCB versus SRH clash at Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.