5 cricketers who are not likely to be retained by Kings XI Punjab

It is that time of the year when the Indian Premier League sides make a note of which cricketers are to be retained for the upcoming season.

In the past, the franchises were asked to drop an e-mail about their retention list but this year, it has been understood that the franchises have been asked to send their representatives to the venue in Mumbai on January 4 and make the announcement of the players they are going to retain.

The Kings XI Punjab, who finished at 5th position last year, will look to shake things up and make a few worthy additions to their team.

In this article, we take a look at 5 players who are not likely to be retained by the franchise.

#5 Martin Guptill

The swashbuckling New Zealand opener is one of the few batsmen who has a better T20I average in comparison to their ODI average.

However, he has not had much of an impact in the Indian Premier League over the past two years. He was quite inconsistent with his performances in the league last year. Despite getting off to a good start on a number of occasions, he was unable to convert it into a big score.

He played just 7 matches for KXIP last season and scored 132 runs at an average of 22 with just one half-century to his name.

He will most likely be released by KXIP this year and go under the hammer.

#4 Shaun Marsh

The 34-year-old veteran is just one of three cricketers who has played for one IPL team, since the inception of the league.

He has been KXIP's best, and most dependable batsman over the years. However, age has caught up with him and he is not as effective in the T20 format as he once was.

He hardly played from 2013-16 and at one point, everyone thought the franchise would release him last year itself. However, he was retained, and he surpassed expectations as he scored 264 runs in 9 innings at an average of 33.

Unfortunately, it looks like the franchise will let him go for the upcoming season.

#3 Eoin Morgan

The England cricket team captain has hardly played a part in the IPL over the past couple of years. He featured in only 4 matches for the Kings XI in 2017 and managed to score just 65 runs at an average of 16.

He was instrumental in KKR's success in 2012 and 2013 but did not have much of an impact since changing teams.

KXIP will surely look past Morgan this season and look to get someone else to replace him.

#2 David Miller

The enigmantic South African middle-order batsman played a huge role in Punjab's 2015 IPL season, which saw the team finish as runners-up.

His explosive batting led Punjab to numerous wins over the past few years. Unfortunately, he did not have much of an impact last year as he featured in only five out of the fourteen matches in the season.

He has been quite inconsistent at the international level as well and we could expect the team management to look for another explosive middle-order batsman in his place.

#1 Glenn Maxwell

It might come as a surprise to many, but the Punjab captain, and their most explosive batsman might not be retained.

He was not in the best terms with the team management last year, especially after Virender Sehwag's comments on Maxwell's performances.

He is also not in the best form at the international level off-late and this might be another reason as to why Punjab will look to shake things up.

He was one of the few batsmen who performed well for KXIP last year, as he scored 310 runs in 14 matches at an average of 31 and a strike-rate of 173.