Australia's skipper, who's led Sunrisers Hyderabad for the last two years and guided them to the final in 2024, missed the recent T20 World Cup with injury and featured in only one of the five Ashes Tests against England.
The 32-year-old hasn't played in any match since taking six wickets in Australia's victory over England in the third Test in Adelaide just before Christmas to retain the Ashes and win the series.
But Cummins had been hoping to line up at the start of the IPL against champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru in 10 days time, only for Hyderabad to report on Wednesday that he "will miss a few games while recovering from injury."
Until Cummins recovers, Ishan Kishan, one of the stars of India's recent home triumph in the T20 World Cup, will fill in as skipper, with Abhishek Sharma the vice-captain.
That will mark a moment of history in the IPL history as, for the first time since 2019, each of the 10 teams will have an Indian captain.
Cummins is a hugely popular and respected figure for the Sunrisers, who also count fellow Aussies Travis Head and IPL newcomer Jack Edwards among their overseas contingent.
The team are hoping to improve on last year's display when they finished sixth in the league and missed out on the playoffs. In 29 completed matches as captain, Cummins has won 15 and lost 14.
There'll be another substantial Australian presence in the latest IPL edition, with 16 players among the franchises, headed by allrounder Cameron Green, who in December became the most expensive ever overseas signing when bought for $A4.2 million by Kolkata Knight Riders at the auction.
