New Delhi: With less than 24 hours left for the deadline for all ten Indian Premier League (IPL) teams to reveal their final retentions, many franchises have already made the decisions on who they want to keep. Several big names are expected to be released by their respective franchises and head into the mega auction which is likely to take place next month.
While Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have reportedly decided to not retain their IPL 2024-winning captain Shreyas Iyer, Delhi Capitals (DC) have shockingly made up their mind to part ways with their captain Rishabh Pant. Both players are genuine captaincy options and are expected to be on the radars of many teams at the mega auction.
Several other prominent names are expected to end their long-term association with their franchises and get released ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction. The upcoming auction is expected to be a grand affair with several top players in the pool. Teams looking to revamp their squads would like to enter the auction with big purses to build a strong team from scratch.
Here is a look at 6 big names who might be released ahead of IPL 2025 mega auction:
1) Rishabh Pant
It would be hard to believe for many but Rishabh Pant might head into the IPL 2025 mega auction as he is reportedly unlikely to be released by the Delhi Capitals. As per reports, DC doesn’t want Pant to continue as captain while the Team India star only wants to stay with the franchise if he is guaranteed captaincy.
Pant will be one of the biggest names at the mega auction and will also be a strong contender to become one of the most expensive buys. The Indian wicket-keeper batter has been leading DC since 2022. He has played 111 matches for DC in his IPL career so far and has 3284 runs to his name at an average of 35.31 and a strike rate of 148.93.
2) Rohit Sharma
Team India’s ODI and Test skipper Rohit Sharma is another big name who can be heading into the auction. Rohit might not be retained by Mumbai Indians after being replaced by Hardik Pandya as captain last season. There were reports of a rift in the MI dressing room after Hardik’s appointment last season with several players backing Rohit.
The controversies affected the team’s performance as MI finished at the bottom of the points table. MI would be looking to release Rohit to ensure they have a stable dressing room with Hardik in charge. Rohit is one of the most successful captains in IPL history having led MI to a joint-record 5 titles.
3) KL Rahul
It’s all but certain that KL Rahul is not being retained by the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) and will head into the IPL 2025 mega auction. There were concerns about Rahul’s leadership and his batting strike rate which convinced LSG to release him despite him being their highest run-getter since their IPL debut in 2022.
Nonetheless, Rahul is expected to trigger a bidding war at the mega auction as multiple teams are interested in him. As per reports, CSK, RCB and GT all want to target the Indian wicket-keeper batter at the auction. Rahul has played 132 matches in IPL career so far and has 4683 runs to his name, including 37 fifties and 4 centuries.
4) Shreyas Iyer
Shreyas Iyer is another Indian captain who is likely to be heading into the IPL 2025 mega auction. Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are reportedly unlikely to retain Iyer despite the Team India star leading them to their third IPL title in IPL 2024. KKR have decided to retain the likes of Sunil Narine, Rinku Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy and Harshit Rana.
Iyer reportedly has offers of captaincy from a few teams if he heads into the auction and will be an in-demand player. The Team India star scored 351 runs in 14 matches for KKR last season at a strike rate of over 146. He has so far amassed 3127 runs in 115 matches at a strike rate of 127.48 in his IPL career.
5) Andre Russell
West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell was expected to be one of the top retentions for Kolkata Knight Riders. However, he is reportedly set to be released with the three-time champions choosing others over him. Russell has been with KKR since the 2014 season and has been one of the key players.
He was retained by KKR in the top slot for Rs 12 crore by the franchise ahead of the IPL 2022 mega auction. Russell played a key role in KKR’s IPL 2024 title triumph earlier this year with 222 runs and 19 wickets in 15 matches. The West Indies all-rounder, known for his big-hitting prowess has 2484 runs and 115 wickets to his name in 127 matches in his IPL career so far.
6) Mitchell Starc
Australian pacer Mitchell Starc created history in the IPL 2024 auction last year by becoming the most expensive player of all time in the history of the tournament. KKR splurged a whopping Rs 24.75 crore to sign Starc, who picked up 17 wickets in 14 matches for them last season. Starc didn’t have an ideal start to the tournament but shone in the playoffs.
The Australian pacer is unlikely to be retained by the three-time champions and can once again fetch big money at the IPL 2025 mega auction.
