IPL 2018 | BCCI announce full retention list for upcoming season

SportsCafe Desk

BySportsCafe Desk,SportsCafe Editor

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IPL’s retention list ahead of the mega-auction later this month has some pretty obvious as well as some surprising names on it. However, with every side getting to retain just five players in a combination of 3+2 or 2+3 through retention and Right to Match, it was bound to be a tricky choice.

Chennai Super Kings

CSK have retained MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina, and Ravindra Jadeja.  

Chennai’s retention list was the easiest to predict right from the very beginning. Though one had their reservations between Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja as their lethal turning options, the yellow army has chosen to stick with the latter. Returning to the tournament after a two-year suspension, MS Dhoni will have a massive task on his hands to protect the legacy he had built over the first eight years of the league. 

Delhi Daredevils

Delhi have decided to retain the services of Chris Morris, Rishabh Pant, and Shreyas Iyer.

Delhi really had nothing to lose after reaching nowhere in the past ten editions. Hence, their decision to go with an all-rounder like Morris after his blistering form last season was quite understandable. Their decision to go with two rookies next was expected after Iyer made his national debut last year and scoring tons of runs against Sri Lanka and would have fetched a huge amount in the auction. Local boy Pant had a successful domestic season as he led Delhi to the Ranji Trophy final.

Mumbai Indians

The defending Champions have retained Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, and Jasprit Bumrah.

The defending champions had a mixed work ahead of the auction. While they were more than sure of retaining Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah after the marvellous season they had in national colours, they had to bang their heads to choose between the Pandya brothers. Krunal, being an uncapped player, was coming in without doing too much damage to their pocket and also was quite tempting but it seems that they might have kept him for the RTM.

Kolkata Knight Riders

KKR have gone with the West Indian duo of Sunil Narine and Andre Russell.

While the 2012 and 2014 champions’ decision to not retain Gautam Gambhir, who led them to both the Championships, was definitely surprising. However, the two choices that they did eventually make were pretty expected. Given the bowling friendly track that Eden Gardens boasts of, the duo would come in tremendously handy. However, KKR would now have to make sure they either get or compensate for the likes of Gambhir, Chris Lynn and Kuldeep Yadav in the auction. 

Kings XI Punjab

The Kings have only retained Axar Patel in their squad.

Punjab has shocked everyone by their lone retention of Axar Patel. Despite having players like Hashim Amla, Glenn Maxwell, and David Miller to choose from, Axar’s sole retention was contrary to what everyone had predicted. One look at his IPL figures and one would question their decisions even more. Axar averages 20.20 in batting and  26.67 in bowling. However, this has made the open auction 100 times more interesting for Punjab.

Royal Challengers Bangalore

RCB have thrown a curve ball retaining Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, and Sarfaraz Khan.

Anyone with could have guessed who the first two choices of RCB would have been. With Kohli and de Villiers on your side, one hardly needs anyone else - not even Chris Gayle in this case. While Gayle’s absence will continue to bug RCB fans till the month end, Sarfaraz was definitely the surprise pick. With KL Rahul firing all cylinders in national colours, his retention was more than expected, but Sarfaraz’s ability to quickfire runs at an average of 29.50 compounded with the fact that he is an uncapped player, seems to have overshadowed it. 

Sunrisers Hyderabad

SRH have decided to go with just David Warner and Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

Both the players have been the side for the past four seasons now and have been exceptional due to their phenomenal consistency. However, leaving India’s first-choice opener Shikhar Dhawan will surely remain an itch.The southpaw, despite his inconsistency, has been the perfect partner for Warner. They would surely not be willing to part ways with him and is very likely to be in the RTM options. Rashid Khan, who did brilliantly in his debut season last year, remains another name that SRH are unlikely to slip from their fingers.

Rajasthan Royals

RR has decided to retain Steve Smith.

Probably, the only side who had the least amount of excitement surrounding them. However, the only retention of Smith makes things interesting nonetheless. It means that the side is prepared with a good list of names after discussing with their supposed skipper and building the whole team from around a stalwart like him would be much easier. Shane Warne had done something similar in the first season which has remained Rajasthan’s only win in the league’s history.

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