5 overseas players who were surprisingly released by their franchises ahead of IPL Auction 2022
Tuesday was a day of intense action for pre-existing IPL franchises. The deadline for player retention ahead of the IPL Auction 2022 saw the eight teams officially release the list of players retained by them for the next cycle of three years.
The usual suspects such as Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni will continue to turn out for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), Mumbai Indians (MI) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) respectively. But there were a number of surprises and shocks as well to come besides the ones along expected lines.
What was interesting to note was that some of the big overseas names were also retained by most franchises. The likes of Glenn Maxwell (RCB), Kieron Pollard (MI), Jos Buttler (Rajasthan Royals) and Anrich Nortje (Delhi Capitals), among others, have been held onto by various teams.
However, it was also surprising to see a number of overseas players who could have been potential retentions, but were let go of. The two new teams from Lucknow and Ahmedabad are getting to pick up to three players in the draft prior to the mega auction. This could see some of these overseas stars demand a lot of attention from these two teams, as well as most of the others.
Here, we take a look at five such overseas players who were surprisingly released by the franchises ahead of the IPL Auction 2022:
#5 Sam Curran of Chennai Super Kings
Sam Curran has been a revelation ever since he made his international debut in 2018. Being a left-armer in terms of both batting and bowling makes him a valuable package for a T20 outfit and his exploits for the Chennai Super Kings gave a good account of the same.
In the 2020 IPL season, when CSK finished at a lowly seventh spot, Sam Curran was one of the few bright spots for the side. Curran has the ability to be a floater with the bat and take on the bowlers, while also showing a knack for the crunch moments. It is, therefore, surprising that CSK have released him from their roster ahead of the IPL Auction 2022, notwithstanding the cult fan following he has earned among the CSK faithful.
Given that he is just 23 and has a full career ahead of him, it would have made sense for CSK to invest in him for the long run. With quality seam-bowling all-rounders in high demand among IPL teams, don't be surprised if CSK go hard for him in the mega auction. That said, it won't be an easy task with multiple other teams set to fight hard for his services.
#4 Ben Stokes of Rajasthan Royals
Ben Stokes' prowess as an all-rounder needs no new introduction. The enigmatic England star has made heads turn across formats. His success in the ODI World Cup 2019 and the subsequent Ashes series paid testament to that fact.
In the IPL too, Ben Stokes won the Most Valuable Player of the Tournament Award in his debut season for Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS) in 2017. Thereafter, the Rajasthan Royals shelled out ₹12.5 crore to acquire his services. But Stokes has not quite been able to replicate the heroics of 2017.
Stokes struck a belligerent century against the Mumbai Indians while opening the batting in Abu Dhabi during IPL 2020. He was set to continue in the same role before an injury to his index finger cut short his stint in 2021. Stokes did not return for the second leg of IPL 2021 either, having taken an indefinite break to focus on his mental well being and tend to his injury.
A player of Ben Stokes' caliber is always in high demand among teams in the IPL, which is why it is surprising that the Royals decided to let go of him. Another big paycheck loading for Stokes at the IPL Auction 2022?
#3 Jofra Archer of Rajasthan Royals
Fewer fast-bowlers doing the rounds today are as complete as Jofra Archer. The England speedster's ability to clock high speeds with equal accuracy makes him one of the most potent seam bowlers going around. Add his ability to bowl at the death and hit the ball hard in the slog overs, and you can see why he is an enticing T20 package.
Which is why Rajasthan Royals letting go of him ahead of the IPL Auction 2022 comes as a bit of a shock. Jofra Archer has been laid low by a recurring elbow injury in recent times and that could possibly be a factor behind the Royals deciding to move on. With England's home summer also potentially clashing with the latter stages of the IPL, availability may have been another factor behind the move.
That said, finding a like-for-like replacement for Jofra Archer is no easy task and the Royals will have some hard thinking to do. Expect Archer to be right up there on the priority list of a number of teams at the IPL Auction 2022.
#2 Liam Livingstone of Rajasthan Royals
The English exodus from the Rajasthan Royals continues with Liam Livingstone next on the list. The swashbuckling right-handed batter is as belligerent a hitter of the cricket ball as they come, with his towering sixes making heads turn across the world.
And which team wouldn't want an all-rounder capable of sending down leg-breaks as well as off-breaks at will?
Needless to say, Livingstone is set to be in high demand among the IPL teams come the player auction. With a top-order of Jos Buttler, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sanju Samson, the Rajasthan Royals could have completed the look with the retention of Liam Livingstone. Livingstone is known to be very flexible as far as his batting position goes, making him an invaluable asset.
Livingstone is currently one of the leading run-scorers in the Abu Dhabi T10 League, where he is the captain of Team Abu Dhabi. A bona fide match-winner with the bat and a utility player in the format, expect Livingstone to rake in the moolah with some intense bidding coming his way in the IPL Auction 2022.
#1 Rashid Khan of Sunrisers Hyderabad
Undoubtedly the biggest bombshell out of all the retentions was the absence of Rashid Khan's name. The Afghan spin wizard has been the lynchpin of the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) bowling unit since his debut in 2017, and was expected to be among the team's first choices ahead of the 2022 season.
However, a failure to negotiate a deal ahead of the mega auction has led to Rashid Khan's departure from the franchise, at least for the time being. SRH CEO K Shanmugam mentioned that the team respected the player's desire to go back into the auction for a higher salary. Mr Shanmugam also stated that the team will try to procure his services at the auction.
That said, it remains to be seen if Rashid Khan will even turn up at auction in the first place. Both the new franchises from Lucknow and Ahmedabad would be keen to acquire him in the draft preceding the auction, and it won't be a surprise if Rashid turns out for either of them.
Should Rashid still go ahead and register for the IPL Auction 2022, expect a windfall with teams going all out to acquire arguably the world's most valuable T20 commodity today.