Best XI of players released by teams ahead of IPL 2023 Auction

The IPL 2023 Auction will take place next month in Kochi, and before the mini auction, all 10 teams have declared their respective lists of released players. Since it is a mini auction, a majority of the teams have decided against going for a complete overhaul.

SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Punjab Kings (PBKS) are the two teams that have released their captains, while some other big names have lost their contracts as well. You can see the full list here.

In this listicle, we will form a playing XI featuring seven Indians and four foreigners from the list of players released ahead of the IPL 2023 Auction.

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Openers - Mayank Agarwal and Kane Williamson

As mentioned earlier, SRH and PBKS have let go of their captains from IPL 2022. Kane Williamson and Mayank Agarwal were the number one retained players of SRH and PBKS, respectively, before the mega auction. However, one bad season has led to the ouster of both players.

Both batters have achieved a lot of success in the IPL. While Williamson has aggregated 2,101 runs in 75 innings, Agarwal has scored 2,327 runs in 113 games. It should not be a surprise if SRH and PBKS re-sign them at lower prices.

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Middle Order - KS Bharat, Manish Pandey, Daryl Mitchell, Nicholas Pooran (wk) and Dwayne Bravo

IPL Qualifier - Mumbai v Chennai (Image: Getty)

KS Bharat will bat at number three for this team. The Indian wicket-keeper batter emerged as a match-winner for the Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2021 but did not get enough chances to play for Delhi Capitals the previous season.

Manish Pandey and Daryl Mitchell will take the fourth and fifth positions, respectively. Pandey, who was the IPL's first Indian centurion, struggled to get going in his first season for the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).

Meanwhile, Mitchell, who has been a game-changer for New Zealand in the T20I arena, could not impress much in his debut season with the Rajasthan Royals.

Wicket-keeper Nicholas Pooran is back in the auction pool as well. The West Indies captain was bought by SRH for ₹10.75 crore in the IPL 2022 Auction. He could not justify his price tag and lost his contract.

Chennai Super Kings shockingly released their veteran all-rounder Dwayne Bravo. The Caribbean player is the highest wicket-taker in IPL history with 183 scalps to his name. He will be one of the top attractions at the IPL 2023 Auction.

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Bowlers - Shivam Mavi, Shreyas Gopal, Sandeep Sharma and Shahbaz Nadeem

Shivam Mavi and Sandeep Sharma will lead the pace attack of this playing XI. Mavi could not justify his massive ₹7.25 crore price tag in IPL 2022 as he finished with five wickets in six matches at an economy rate of more than 10.

Meanwhile, Sharma took two wickets in five games for the Punjab Kings last season.

Left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem did not get a single game at the Lucknow Super Giants in IPL 2022. LSG did not retain him ahead of the IPL 2023 Auction.

Leg-spinner Shreyas Gopal, who was a top wicket-taker during his stint with the Rajasthan Royals, played only one game for SRH in IPL 2022, returning with figures of 1/34. Both Gopal and Nadeem will hope to receive more chances to play in IPL 2023.

Best XI of released players for IPL 2023 Auction

Mayank Agarwal, Kane Williamson, KS Bharat, Manish Pandey, Daryl Mitchell, Nicholas Pooran, Dwayne Bravo, Shivam Mavi, Shreyas Gopal, Sandeep Sharma, Shahbaz Nadeem.