5 best retentions made by IPL franchises for the future

#3 Andre Russell, Kolkata Knight Riders

Andre Russell: Jamaican six-hitting machine

After a one year ban due to doping violation, Russell came back to competitive cricket since February 2018. Although KKR backed him considering all-rounder ability and retained him in the pre-auction buy for 7 crores.

With his brutal hitting-power, he destroyed the opposition bowlers by whacking the ball out of the park at the fag-end of the innings. In 14 innings, Russell scored 316 runs at a jaw-dropping strike rate of 184.79 (came 2nd on the super-striker list).

Russell, with his accurate bouncers and deadly yorkers, gave KKR some handy strikes at important moments. Though he struggled with his hamstring at times, he scalped 13 wickets at crucial matches of the tournament.

Best Performance: His 25-ball 49* (3 boundaries and 5 sixes) against Rajasthan Royals in the Eliminator propelled KKR to post a match-winning total of 169.