The Indian Premier League stands out among the world’s best T20 leagues and every year it comes with a ton of surprises whether in the form of some new players or some shocking swaps, and now the tension seems to be increasing as we head towards the mega auctions for the 2025 season.
The teams, yet again, have been given a chance to revamp their teams while retaining their core players. While some retentions were justified, some releases have been a real shock to the fans, we all weren’t quite ready for that. Although there’s still a slight chance that the teams might buy back the dome of their old players with the RTM cards, but it seems to be unlikely as of now.
Here are the five shocking releases from teams before the mega Auctions for the IPL 2025:
Delhi Capitals releases their captain, Rishabh Pant:
Despite being the calm and composed leader for the Delhi Capitals, which is also Rishabh’s home team, the management has decided to let go of the captain ahead of the mega auctions. For the fans, this is nothing but a huge shock, as he should have been among the retentions but, we never know whose decision it was to leave the team.
Making his IPL debut in the year 2016, Rishabh has always been with the Delhi team, and now it would be interesting to see how big he is going to get when his name comes out at the auction table.
With over 3000 runs in over 100 games, Pant is a lot more than just an experienced player, who will not only strengthen any team he goes to but might also become the reason for their success in the coming years.
Rajasthan Royals let go of their fiery opener Jos Buttler!
In the last few years, Rajasthan Royals have had a great time under the captaincy of Sanju Samson and one of the standout reasons for their success is none other than the Englishman, Jos Buttler. He even managed to get closer to Virat’s long standing record of 973 runs. It seemed that he could break his record, but he was still short and could only manage to score 863 runs in 17 games in the 2022 season.
Jos Buttler will surely be among the top earners from the auction as all the teams looking out for the T20 specialist openers, will be having a huge opportunity to get their hands on one of the best openers in the cricket world.
In just 107 matches, Jos Buttler has managed to hammer down 3,582 runs including his seven centuries, which clearly showcases his ruthlessness in the middle. He is a kind of player who can finish games single-handedly, which is a characteristic that all of the teams are eager to have.
The Defending Champions, Kolkata Knight Riders let go of their prime Knight, Shreyas Iyer!
One of the biggest shocks the retention and the fans have faced is the release of Shreyas Iyer from the Kolkata Knight Riders, who were the champions of the IPL 2024, as Iyer was the one, who led them to their third IPL title after a series of unsuccessful seasons. There could also be a possibility that Iyer himself asked to be released, but he will also be among the highest paid players considering he has leadership skills and one IPL title under his belt which even some big players don’t have yet.
Not only Iyer possesses the ability to lead the team efficiently but he has been among the major contributors with the bat at the position he bats. With over 3100 runs in around 116 games, he provides stability in the middle-order along with a fantastic cricketing mind.
The teams looking for a leading face would be going all in for the right-hander as they would be getting a great leader and that too Indian so they could use their foreign player slots on other players.
Lucknow Super Giants Moves On From KL Rahul
KL Rahul is undoubtedly one of the best openers in the Indian Premier League, but the league has offered numerous turns to KL’s IPL journey and he is yet to find a loyal franchise for himself. He has already represented Royal Challengers Bangalore, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Punjab Kings and Lucknow Super Giants, not only has he represented but he has been the captain for two of them, which also showcases his leading abilities.
Whether it’s the Indian team or the Indian Premier League, KL Rahul has been adjusting since the beginning of his cricketing career. But this mega Auctions can be exciting for him as he will be in the pool and the Royal Challengers Bangalore, who are keen on picking up an opener could bet everything on him.
With a handsome IPL career, KL has amassed over 4500 runs since his debut in 2013 season. Having these kind of numbers, any franchise would want to have him not just as a player but also as the face for their team.
Yuzvendra Chahal gets unlucky, Again!
Among the current Indian players, Yuzvendra Chahal often finds himself in a helpless situation despite giving his 200 percent on the field. After the snub from Royal Challengers Bangalore, Rajasthan Royals also sidelined him, despite Yuzi being their leading wicket taker in the last few seasons.
There’s a possibility that the Royals could bring him back with the RTM card so they could get him for a lower price than before. But the quality that Yuzi possesses is extraordinary and no team would be afraid to go big for him, which could become a lesson for the Royals.
There have been a few occasions where the leg-spinner has turned the game single-handedly for both Rajasthan Royals and Royal Challengers Bengaluru. With over 200 IPL wickets and a truckload of experience under his belt, he might become the highest paid spinner for the upcoming season.
Apart from these shocking retentions, there have been some amazing and interesting keeps in the form of Mayank Yadav, Tilak Varma, Abhishek Porel, Dhruv Jurel and many more, which showcases that the franchises are preparing the core for the coming years and wants to keep these talented youngsters in their kitty.
With a huge pool of experienced and young players, the Auctions will be quite exciting, as there will be a lot of swaps, which is among the main features of the league.