KKR released players 2023: Full list of players released by Kolkata Knight Riders ahead of IPL Auction 

On Tuesday, November 15, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) announced that they have released a total of 15 players from their squad prior to the impending Indian Premier League (IPL 2023) mini-auction.

The Kolkata-based franchise will aim to switch things up after their dismal run in the previous season. They failed to qualify for the all-important playoffs in IPL 2022, finishing seventh in the points table.

The KKR team management has decided to release several big names, including Sam Billings, Ajinkya Rahane, Mohammad Nabi, and Chamika Karunaratne.

Furthermore, they have also let go of star pacer Pat Cummins and swashbuckling opener Alex Hales, following their withdrawals from the upcoming edition of the competition. Notably, Billings has also opted out of IPL 2023 to focus on the longer format of the game.

23-year-old Indian pacer Shivam Mavi, who was associated with the two-time champions since 2018, is also among the released players. However, there is a possibility that the Knights might re-sign some of the aforementioned names at the auction.

It is worth mentioning that the franchise has traded-in Shardul Thakur from the Delhi Capitals (DC) in exchange for Aman Khan. Kolkata have also acquired New Zealand speedster Lockie Ferguson and Afghanistan wicketkeeper Rahmanullah Gurbaz from the Gujarat Titans (GT).

KKR released players list

Here is the list of players released by Kolkata ahead of the IPL 2023 auction:

Pat Cummins - (₹7.25 crore)

Shivam Mavi (₹7.25 crore)

Sam Billings (₹2 crore)

Aman Khan (traded) (₹20 lakh)

Sheldon Jackson (₹60 lakh)

Ajinkya Rahane (₹1 crore)

Alex Hales (₹1.50 crore)

Abhijeet Tomar (₹40 lakh)

Rasikh Salam (₹20 lakh)

Ramesh Kumar (₹20 lakh)

Ashok Verma (₹55 lakh)

Mohammad Nabi (₹1 crore)

Chamika Karunaratne (₹50 lakh)

Baba Indrajith (₹20 lakh)

Pratham Singh (₹20 lakh)

The franchise will go into the IPL 2023 auction with a purse of ₹7.05 crore, the lowest among all ten franchises. They have 11 more slots to fill. The auction is set to take place in Kochi on December 23.