IPL 2022 player retentions: Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians retain core team, others spring surprise

The IPL 2022 player retentions saw Chennai Super Kings retain their core side while Mumbai Indians, along with other teams had some constraints and surprises up their sleeve.

Rashid Khan was not retained by Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL 2022 player retention scheme. (Image credit: Twitter)
By Siddharth vishwanathan | Dec 1, 2021 | 5 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

The IPL 2022 player retention threw up some surprises. Some of the teams like Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians did not throw up many surprises. At the end of the day, the player retention policy went off without a hitch, although there was criticism of the retention policy from the Delhi Capitals’ owner. Prior to the auction, there are reports that KL Rahul and Rashid Khan might be banned from IPL 2022 after they were approached by the Lucknow franchise. The status of the two individuals is uncertain.

Rashid Khan’s association with Sunrisers Hyderabad ended after he was not retained. Having played 76 games for Sunrisers since 2017, Rashid’s exit is a massive blow to the 2016 IPL champions. With no David Warner as well, Sunrisers will face an uphill task. Punjab Kings are also starting off a fresh slate, with only Mayank Agarwal retained along with Arshdeep Singh. Here are some of the key highlights of IPL player retention.

Chennai Super Kings retain core

There were no surprises and doubts regarding which players Chennai Super Kings were going to retain. MS Dhoni was going to be with the franchise until 2023 reportedly. Ravindra Jadeja and Ruturaj Gaikwad are the stalwarts of the Chennai Super Kings team. Gaikwad, in particular, has been the star for Chennai Super Kings in the last two years. Only Moeen Ali was retained as one of the overseas players, which means Faf du Plessis will be bid big in the February auction.

However, the price at which the players were retained was surprising. Jadeja was picked for Rs 16 crore while Dhoni was Rs 12 crore. That means that Jadeja was the first pick of the Chennai Super Kings side.

Players retained: MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Moeen Ali

Purse available for auction: Rs 48 crore

Mumbai Indians leave out Pandya brothers

There were no surprises in the Mumbai Indians camp, but the exclusion of the Pandya brothers was a surprise. Hardik and Krunal might still be picked at the auction. Rohit Sharma was the obvious choice with Rs 16 crore while Jasprit Bumrah went for Rs 12 crore. Suryakumar Yadav was the next in choice along with Kieron Pollard. Mumbai Indians will want a strong overseas bowling unit for IPL 2022. They may also want to boost the spin department, with Rahul Chahar also not retained.

Players retained: Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav, Kieron Pollard

Purse available for auction: Rs 48 crore

Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Yuzvendra Chahal conundrum

They have sprung some surprises, leaving out the likes of Devdutt Padikkal, Washington Sundar, and Yuzvendra Chahal. With Virat Kohli not becoming the captain and the retirement of AB de Villiers, Royal Challengers Bangalore are almost rebuilding from scratch. Virat Kohli was certain to be retained. But, his price is lower than that of Jadeja and Rohit with Rs 15 crore. They have gone ahead and retained Glenn Maxwell, who is certain to fill in the role of AB de Villiers with the bat. Mohammed Siraj was expected, but they could have retained Chahal as he was the best performer for the franchise all these years.

Players retained: Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, Mohammed Siraj

Purse available for auction: Rs 57 crore

Delhi Capitals suffer from problem of plenty

The 2020 IPL finalists had a problem of plenty in their squad. Kagiso Rabada, R Ashwin, Shikhar Dhawan, and Shreyas Iyer were some of the big names who were not retained by the franchise. Parth Jindal, the owner of Delhi Capitals stated, “The auction process is like this. Going forward, the IPL needs to look at it because it is not fair that you build up a team, give youngsters a chance, groom them and they get opportunities for the franchises and play for their country and then you lose them after three years. IPL needs to have a relook.”

The omission of the big names was a big jolt to Delhi Capitals as they look to retain them through the auction.

Players retained: Rishabh Pant, Axar Patel, Prithvi Shaw, Anrich Nortje

Purse available for auction: Rs 51 crore

Kolkata Knight Riders have a mixture of youth and experience

The two-time IPL champions have retained a mixture of youth and experience in the side. They needed stalwarts to guide the team while the performance of the youngsters was simply too good. Varun Chakravarthy and Venkatesh Iyer were the standouts in IPL 2021 while Sunil Narine and Andre Russell are proven match-winners. Perhaps, the smartest retentions for the auction

Players retained: Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Venkatesh Iyer, Varun Chakravarthy

Purse available for auction: Rs 56 crore

Sunrisers Hyderabad’s retention of destruction

Perhaps the most contentious retentions of them all. There was already off-field drama even before the media reports came out. David Warner, as expected, was not retained and he might go to a new franchise after seven years. But, the non-retention of Rashid Khan was a major blow. With Warner and Rashid out, Sunrisers Hyderabad will have to bid big in the auction. Keeping that as Plan B, they have retained only three players, two of which are uncapped. Kane Williamson will be the captain of the side in 2022 but it depends on which players come to the fore.

Players retained: Kane Williamson, Abdul Samad, Umran Malik

Purse available for auction: Rs 68 crore

Punjab Kings start from scratch

KL Rahul had already wanted out of the Punjab Kings franchise. The head coach of the team, Anil Kumble, had indicated that Punjab Kings wanted to retain Rahul. With his exit and also with Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran, Ravi Bishnoi also not retained, Punjab Kings are starting afresh. They have retained only two players and they might go for broke in the auction.

Players retained: Mayank Agarwal, Arshdeep Singh

Purse available for auction: Rs 72 crore

Rajasthan Royals leave out some players

There were reports that Sanju Samson might exit the franchise. But, his retention, that too as captain indicates that the franchise has kept their trust with the Kerala wicketkeeper. They have chosen to retain Jos Buttler and the youngster Yashasvi Jaiswal. Keeping Buttler made sense as he has been Rajasthan Royals’ ace player in the last couple of years

Players retained: Sanju Samson, Jos Buttler, Yashasvi Jaiswal

Purse available for auction: Rs 62 crore

The trend on the bottom teams has been to start from scratch and go big at the auction. The top teams have gone for stability and with players who are match-winners. But, the introduction of the Lucknow and Ahmedabad franchises indicate that the retention of some key players even through the auction might not be straightforward.





Related Post

HIGHLIGHTS

Buzzwords