IPL 2020: The best XI of released players ahead of the auction

The auction for the 2020 India Premier League season is all set to held in Kolkata on 19 December. After the 14 November trading deadline, all the eight franchises released their comprehensive list of released and retained players.

A lot of obvious decisions taken with respect to retaining and releasing players are now out in the open. At the same time, there were some surprising decisions made too. The next step for all the franchises is obviously to get their strategies right for the auction.

But before that, here’s a look at the best XI of released players.

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Openers: Chris Lynn (captain) and Evin Lewis

Kolkata Knight Riders releasing Australian big-hitter Chris Lynn was the biggest shock of the pre-auction period. And Lynn responded by finishing as the top run-getter in the Abu Dhabi T10 League.

Lynn smashed 371 runs in eight matches during the tournament, including a record 91 not out off 30 balls.

It is really hard to comprehend what was going through the KKR management's minds while releasing Lynn. He finished the 2019 season with 405 runs at a strike rate of 139.65, and this was after he had blazed his way to 491 runs in 2018 at a strike rate of 130.23.

Evin Lewis was released by Mumbai Indians, having scored only 48 runs in three matches during the 2019 season. However, the year before that Lewis did reasonably well for MI, with 382 runs in 13 games at a strike rate of 134.80.

Although he hasn’t been a consistent performer, there is no doubting that the West Indian can be a match-winner on his day.