5 IPL captains who were released by their franchise before an auction

#3 Adam Gilchrist (IPL 2009-2010: DC)

Despite winning Deccan Chargers the 2009 IPL, Gilchrist was released after 2010.

The team that was bullied in the inaugural IPL to take a bottom finish, the now-defunct Deccan Chargers mounted a stunning recovery under Adam Gilchrist in 2009 to lift the title. The swashbuckling Australian's influence, however, fell short of taking the side far in 2010, and he was promptly released after three seasons at the helm.

The Chargers were in operation for one season after, under the captaincy of Kumar Sangakkara and then Cameron White, as they had a choppy season. Gilchrist found interest in the Kings XI Punjab, who he led for the next three seasons before announcing his retirement from all cricket in 2013.

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#2 Gautam Gambhir (IPL 2011-2017: KKR)

Gautam Gambhir had a good run with KKR, but was let go of as the franchise looked to the future.

Gautam Gambhir would feel hard done for being one of the IPL's most successful captains, and yet having the ignominy of being released as captain twice. As the Delhi Daredevils (now Capitals) skipper, Gambhir performed well, taking them to the top of the table in 2009 from where they lost the semifinals. Upon release in 2011, he was the most expensive buy in the auction, as KKR invested in him as captain.

Gambhir's captaincy completely changed things for KKR - they made playoffs after three poor seasons, going on to win the title in 2012 and 2014 from then on. While they either missed the playoffs narrowly or missed the finals in the next three seasons, Gambhir ensured KKR were seen as a side to beat. His release from KKR in 2017 hurt the franchise going forward, while his own playing career ended in 2018 after a woeful season with Delhi.

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#1 Steve Smith (IPL 2014-2020: RR)

Steve Smith has a good captaincy record on paper, but was released after a poor IPL 2020.

An interesting nugget about controversial Aussie star batsman Steve Smith is his IPL record as captain - he has the second-best win-loss ratio for anyone who has led in more than 40 matches. Much of that could be influenced by his strong performance as the Rising Pune Supergiant skipper in 2017, where they made a late dash and reached the finals.

As Rajasthan Royals skipper, Smith hasn't quite had the same impact - the team last qualified for the playoffs only under Ajinkya Rahane in 2018, after which there have been disappointments for the side. Smith's own form tapered away in IPL 2020, and the hefty investment by the franchise into Smith was doubted as RR finished at the bottom. RR have named Sanju Samson as the new skipper, while Smith looks set to attract big bids at the auction.