IPL 2018: Teams retain tried and tested
There were no prizes for guessing at the Indian Premier League Player Retention on Thursday as the evening went along the predictable lines.
The man in currency at the moment i.e. India captain Virat Kohli expectedly emerged the most expensive retained player. The Royal Challengers Bangalore held on to their most famous player for Rs 17 crore, breaking the Rs 15 crore barrier for Player 1.
Meanwhile, India’s most successful captain MS Dhoni returned to his second home Chennai Super Kings, who are back in the IPL fold after two years. He was retained for the price of Rs 15 crore. Not just that, Suresh Raina and Ravindra Jadeja, who formed the core of the side, are back as well.
“Dhoni is extremely excited, he is waiting to wear the yellow jersey again and we are excited to have him back,” said George John, a CSK official.
The retainership of these players saw former BCCI president N Srinivasan-owned side being left with a purse of Rs 47 crore out of a total of Rs 80 crore.
Apart from Kohli, RCB chose to retain the South Africa’s AB de Villiers.
However, the biggest surprise of all was from the Bengaluru outfit that let go of West Indian superstar Chris Gayle. The big-hitting batsman, at 38, is not a long-term investment and that possibly is the reason why Royal Challengers decided to retain 20-year-old Sarfaraz Khan.
Mumbai Indians went with their obvious choices by retaining their star players — captain Rohit Sharma, all-rounder Hardik Pandya and unorthdox fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah.
“Rohit and MI are synonymous while Hardik and Bumrah are special for us. We are happy that we were able to retain some players. Hardik and Bumrah are pillars of our franchise,” said Mukesh Ambani’s son Akash, who represented Mumbai Indians. However, some eyebrows were raised when the Mumbai outfit chose to not retain their key player over the years — Lasith Malinga.
Delhi Daredevils chose to hold on to exciting young India batsmen Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer with an eye on the future. The DD management also retained their big-hitting South African all-rounder Chris Morris. “We have retained two youngsters and the whole team will be built around them. Chris Morris is a top all-rounder,” said Delhi’s chief executive officer Hemant Dua.
Gambhir not retained
All eyes were on Shah Rukh Khan-owned Kolkata Knight Riders to see if they will continue with their most successful skipper Gautam Gambhir, who guided the team to two titles. However, there was some disappointing news for the India discard. He will go under the hammer during the auction as KKR chose not to retain him. Instead, they went with the unorthodox Sunil Narine (Rs 8.5 crore). His newly-found explosive batting was also the reason behind his retention. The other retention was controversial all-rounder Andre Russell.
The Sunrisers Hyderabad went with their Australia captain David Warner and the seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar. “We want to pick impact players who can take the team forward. Warner and Bhuvneshwar are impact players and impact is the right word for SRH,” team mentor VVS Laxman said.
KXIP spring a surprise
Kings XI Punjab have had the Maxwells and the Millers in their team, but the Punjab outfit chose to retain left-arm spinner Axar Patel. He is a limited-over specialist with the ability to hit big, but his name has not got many excited so far.
Meanwhile, Rajasthan Royals, which is returning to IPL after two years, chose to go retain Australian skipper Steve Smith.
THOSE RETAINED
CHENNAI SUPER KINGSMS Dhoni: Rs 15crSuresh Raina: Rs 11 crRavindra Jadeja: Rs 7 crRemaining purse: Rs 47 crore
MUMBAI INDIANSRohit Sharma: Rs 15 crHardik Pandya: Rs 11 crJasprit Bumrah: Rs 7 crRemaining purse: Rs 47 crore
RCBVirat Kohli: Rs 17 crAB de Villiers: Rs 11 crSarfaraz Khan: Rs 1.75 crRemaining purse: Rs 49 crore
DELHI DAREDEVILSRishabh Pant: Rs 8 crChris Morris: Rs 7.1 crShreyas Iyer: Rs 7 crRemaining purse: Rs 47 crore
SUNRISERS HYDERABADDavid Warner: Rs 12 crBhuvneshwar Kumar: Rs 8.5 crRemaining purse: Rs 59 crore
KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERSSunil Narine: Rs 8.5 crAndre Russell: Rs 7 crRemaining purse: Rs 59 crore
RAJASTHAN ROYALSSteven Smith: Rs 12 crRemaining purse: Rs 67.5 crore
KINGS XI PUNJABAxar Patel: Rs 6.75 croreRemaining purse: Rs 67.5 crore