The original eight franchises retained some of their yesteryear star performers for the upcoming IPL edition on Tuesday. Players like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Rishabh Pant, and Jasprit Bumrah were the few big names that were retained by their respective teams, but KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, David Warner, Rashid Khan, and Ben Stokes were all released despite being star performers all these years. DRITI ATRI takes a look at the player retention for 8 teams
MUMBAI INDIANS: The five-time champions retained skipper Rohit Sharma, fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah, middle order batsman Suryakumar Yadav and all-rounder Kieron Pollard ahead of the mega auctions. And let go the likes of Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Trent Boult, and Quinton de Kock, among others. Even though MI retained the core of Rohit, Bumrah and Pollard, they could have picked Ishan over Surya as the pocket-sized dynamo is developing into an explosive batsman and could have served the franchise for many more years to come. Also, Hardik’s departure is surprising considering he is one of the biggest match winners in the T20 circuit, but his inability to bowl might have worked against him.
CHENNAI SUPER KINGS: The defending champions kept dynamic Ravindra Jadeja, inspirational leader MS Dhoni, 2021 Orange Cap winner Ruturaj Gaikwad, and English all-rounder Moeen Ali.The Dad’s Army went for Ruturaj Gaikwad instead of Suresh Raina and Faf du Plessis, mainly because of the age factor and considering that he could be a long-term investment for the franchise. While Jadeja and Dhoni were the expected names before, what came as a surprise was that Jadeja was the team’s first choice player, meaning that he will now earn 16 crore per season. The yellow army also went for Moeen Ali, maybe because, apart from being a dependable batter, Ali can prove very useful on a Chennai wicket.
ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE: Virat Kohli and Glenn Maxwell were the two obvious choices for the team, but RCB surprised everyone by picking Mohammed Siraj over Yuzvendra Chahal, Devdutt Padikkal, and Harshal Patel for the 2022 IPL. Siraj, without a doubt, is one of the most talented bowlers in the Indian unit, but the franchise’s decision to let go Chahal was shocking, especially when the leggie was the team’s best bowler in the last five years. Also, letting go of 2021 Purple Cap winner Harshal Patel and upcoming star Devdutt Padikkal might come back to hurt RCB. Especially Padikkal, who’s going to make a big name for himself in the international arena.
DELHI CAPITALS: The Delhi Capitals have decided to keep Rishabh Pant as their captain for the upcoming seasons, effectively closing the door on Shreyas Iyer, who was looking for a leadership role in the IPL. The Delhi lad, Pant, was impressive in his first season as captain and led DC to the play-offs after they finished first in the 2021 league table. Apart from Pant, DC went with Axar Patel, Prithvi Shaw, and South African pacer Anrich Nortje and left out Shikhar Dhawan, who still has a lot to offer despite him not getting any younger, and Ravichandran Ashwin, who is India’s No. 1 all-format spinner. Also, leaving someone like Kagiso Rabada, who won the Purple Cap in 2020, was a massive call.
RAJASTHAN ROYALS: The winners of the inaugural edition retained skipper Sanju Samson, English keeper-batsman Jos Buttler and young Yashasvi Jaiswal, and let go English all-rounder Ben Stokes and fast bowler Jofra Archer. The Royals had a tough choice to make between the three English superstars, but they stuck with Buttler alone, who had a good T20 World Cup outing in the UAE this year. Archer and Stokes have struggled with injuries this year, and this was one of the main reasons why the Royals didn’t go with them.
PUNJAB KINGS: Their best batsman in the last four seasons, KL Rahul, wanted to move out, and PBKS respected that decision, which is going to be a blessing for whatever side he represents next. In the absence of the Karnataka stalwart, Punjab retained Rahul’s best friend and opening partner Mayank Agarwal for the upcoming season, along with youngster Arshdeep Singh, who was impressive in the 2021 edition. The Mohali-based side didn’t have much to choose from after the poor show the players put on in the last few seasons, but they could have kept hold of Mohammed Shami or Ravi Bishnoi. The duo has impressed while representing Punjab.
KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS: KKR turned the tables the other way round in the second half of the 2021 IPL, where they reached the final as well. Their success in the UAE was primarily built around one batsman, Venkatesh Iyer, and the Kolkata-based franchise retained their prized asset, who will now earn eight crores per season - a 3900% increase from the 10 lakh rupees which he earned in the 2021 edition. But while they kept hold of Iyer, along with seasoned campaigners Andre Russell and Sunil Narine and mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy, KKR let go of Shubman Gill and skipper Eoin Morgan. Gill’s exclusion especially raised eyebrows because the 2018 U19 World Cup winner was KKR’s best batter in the last few years and was seen as the future captain as well. Pat Cummins, former captain Dinesh Karthik, and the middle order duo of Nitish Rana and Rahul Tripathi are among those who have been released.
SUNRISERS HYDERABAD: David Warner, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jonny Bairstow, Jason Holder, Jason Roy, Manish Pandey, and T Natarajan. Sunrisers Hyderabad had so much to choose from, but instead they chose to retain Kiwi captain Kane Williamson and two Indian youngsters from Jammu and Kashmir - Abdul Samad and Umran Malik - ahead of the mega auctions. The franchise’s decision to let go Rashid Khan, who is the best T20 bowler in the last five years, is still not easy to digest for anyone in the cricketing fraternity. Even though Warner, who led them to the 2016 IPL title and was the Orange Army’s best batter in IPL history, was excluded, it was expected following his sour relationship with the team management by the end of the 2021 edition.