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All 10 Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises have named their updated squads, revealing their list of released and retained players, ahead of the IPL 2023 auction. The mini-auction for the upcoming season is all set to take place on December 23 in Kochi.
While last year’s runners-up Rajasthan Royals (RR) released nine players, including the New Zealand duo of Daryl Mitchell and James Neesham, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) let go of as many as 16 names. While Australia’s Test captain Pat Cummins pulled out of the league to focus on national duty, Kolkata also released Ajinkya Rahane, Shivam Mavi, and Mohammad Nabi among others.
Punjab Kings (PBKS) took the big decision to release Mayank Agarwal after already having replaced him as captain with veteran opener Shikhar Dhawan. In some great news for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) fans, the franchise has retained all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, putting an end to all speculation.
While some of the released players might feature in the upcoming auction, some of them might never be seen in the T20 league again. We list three such names.
#1 Dwayne Bravo
Veteran West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo is the leading wicket-taker in the history of the IPL. In a stellar career in the cash-rich T20 league, he has claimed 183 wickets in 161 matches at an average of 23.82 and an economy rate of 8.38.
Bravo was one of the pillars of the CSK franchise for numerous years. He still jointly holds the record for the highest number of wickets taken in a single season (32 in 2013). The West Indies cricketer did not do a bad job in IPL 2022 as well. He claimed 16 wickets in 10 matches at an impressive average of 18.69
Despite his reasonable returns, CSK’s decision to release Bravo is understandable. The Caribbean “champion” is now 39 years old. Age might just be a number, but Chennai must have taken the decision to let him go with an eye on the future. Other franchises too might be thinking along similar lines.
#2 Aaron Finch
Australia’s T20I captain Aaron Finch is among the many players to have been released by KKR ahead of the IPL 2023 auction. The 35-year-old joined the Kolkata franchise for IPL 2022 as a replacement for Alex Hales after the latter pulled out citing bio-bubble fatigue.
The aggressive opener struggled to make an impact. In five games, he scored a mere 86 runs at an average of 17.20 and a strike rate of 140.98. Of his 86 runs, 58 came in one knock, which meant he was dismissed cheaply in all other matches.
Finch has never quite come to terms with the IPL. Despite having played for a record nine franchises, he has a modest record of 2091 runs in 92 matches at an average of 25.19 and a strike rate of 128.20. The seasoned cricketer has looked past his prime as a batter for nearly a year now.
According to some media reports, Finch is planning to skip IPL 2023 to spend time with his family. Considering all the permutations and combinations, one is bound to conclude that the Aussie might never feature in the Indian T20 league again.
#3 Jason Roy
England opener Jason Roy’s case is quite a unique one - as eccentric as his batting style. The dashing batter has been expectedly released by defending champions Gujarat Titans (GT).
After being picked by the franchise at the mega auction for his base price of ₹2 crore, Roy swiftly pulled out, stating that he wanted to spend more time with his family, after being away from them for long periods due to bio-bubble.
This was not the first time Roy had pulled out of the tournament. In 2020 as well, he did not feature in the tournament, citing personal reasons, after being purchased by Delhi Capitals (DC) for ₹1.5 crore.
Despite having a game cut out for the T20 format, the right-handed batter has only featured in 13 IPL matches spread across three seasons.
The 32-year-old recently suffered a major professional setback as he was dropped from the England side for the T20 World Cup 2022. Roy has age on his side and might even go on to regain his batting form. But considering his history of pulling out, franchises are unlikely to invest their time and money in him.
After all, a lot goes into picking a player at the auction and when a cricketer decides to back out, it often throws plans out of gear.
