IPL Retention 2023: "I am surprised with the number of people that KKR have let go" - Aakash Chopra on the 2-time champions' strategy ahead of the mini-auction
Former Indian batter Aakash Chopra feels that the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have taken a bold step by releasing 16 players ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 mini-auction. The two-time champions now have 10 players among their ranks with a purse of ₹7.05 crore, which is the lowest among all 10 franchises.
The likes of Pat Cummins, Alex Hales, and Sam Billings announced their decision to skip the tournament. The franchise has released a slew of players ranging from overseas players to local prospects.
Lockie Ferguson, Shardul Thakur, and Rahmanullah Gurbaz were brought in through the trade window, a mere couple of days before the deadline for the submission of the retention list was to be submitted.
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Observing that there is currently a massive shortage of batters in the KKR outfit following the release of the majority of the players, Chopra said on his YouTube channel:
"I am surprised with the number of people that KKR have let go. Now among the players that are remaining, I see a massive shortage of batters. Bowling is still relatively fine with the arrival of Shardul Thakur and Lockie Ferguson. Thakur, Yadav, Russell will be there and one among Ferguson and Southee can feature as the overseas pacer."
Shreyas Iyer and Nitish Rana remain the mainstays in the batting unit. They are currently without any opening batters barring Gurbaz and Venkatesh Iyer, having released Ajinkya Rahane and Aaron Finch.
"KKR might be able to forge a decent playing XI, but they have no backup whatsoever" - Aakash Chopra
KKR still have a strong core, with all four of their initially retained players still part of the squad.
Their bold moves in the trade window have helped them to strengthen their probable playing XI, but they still have a lot of work to do in terms of bolstering the remainder of the squad.
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Noting that their remaining seven crore might not be enough to get decent backup players at the auction, Chopra said:
"KKR might be able to forge a decent playing XI, but they have no backup whatsoever. There are always questions about Russell and Narine's fitness, so they need some serious backup. But, they don't have that much money to forge a serious backup. RCB also have a similar amount left in their purse, but they almost have a complete team."
Chopra continued:
"It will be a tight affair for KKR when it comes to getting good backup players at the auction. They will, however, put up a strong playing XI on the field, there is no doubt about that."
The franchise has only been able to qualify for the playoffs once across the last four editions. They will have to be smart about their picks at the upcoming auction and rope in decent backup players in case injuries or poor form impact their campaign in 2023.
Did the two-time champions take the right decision by releasing the majority of their squad with an insufficient purse? Let us know what you think.