The eight existing Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises will submit their player-retention list on Tuesday for the next edition.
They are allowed to retain a maximum of four, while the two new franchises — Lucknow and Ahmedabad — can acquire three from the rest of the player pool before the January auction.
The salary purse for the IPL auction has been set at ₹90 crore per team, and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has clarified that the existing teams can pick a maximum of three Indian players — capped or uncapped. A maximum of two overseas and two uncapped Indian players can be part of the four retentions.
Sportstar spoke to several franchises what the probable retention list could look like.
Delhi Capitals: Capitals look certain to retain current skipper Rishabh Pant, Prithvi Shaw, and Axar Patel. Among overseas players, the franchise is expected to opt for Anrich Nortje over Kagiso Rabada.
Mumbai Indians: The five-time champion side is expected to retain captain Rohit Sharma and pace ace Jasprit Bumrah. Among the overseas recruits, Kieron Pollard is likely to be preferred, while there could be a toss-up between Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan. The Pandya brothers — Hardik and Krunal — will head to the auction pool, unless the Ahmedabad franchise picks one or both of them.
Chennai Super Kings: M.S. Dhoni remains the captain of the team, while Ravindra Jadeja and Ruturaj Gaikwad should be retained too. Moeen Ali could be the preferred overseas all-rounder.
Punjab Kings: The team could retain Mayank Agarwal and Ravi Bishnoi. There could be a toss-up between the seasoned Mohammed Shami and the young gun Arshdeep Singh. With K.L. Rahul set to move to one of the new franchises — possibly Lucknow — the franchise remains undecided on its foreign retention.
Kolkata Knight Riders: All eyes will be on Eoin Morgan. While there is a buzz that Knightriders might eventually not retain him, his success in IPL 2021 could force the side to change its mind. Among the Indians, the franchise could opt for Venkatesh Iyer, Shubman Gill, or Varun Chakravarthy. Among the overseas players, Sunil Narine is set to continue.
Rajasthan Royals: Sanju Samson will remain the captain, while the franchise could opt for Yashasvi Jaiswal or Chetan Sakariya. Jos Buttler is likely to be retained as one of the overseas picks. And the franchise might keep either Ben Stokes or Jofra Archer ahead of an Indian player.
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, and Yuzvendra Chahal are certain to be retained. The fourth player could be Harshal Patel who had a good India debut following a memorable IPL 2021.
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Kane Williamson is likely to be retained, while the second choice would be Rashid Khan. Abdul Samad could be the lone Indian retained.
