Steve Smith headlined a busy day for IPL owners on Wednesday. All eight franchises announced their list of players retained and released ahead of the auction next month.
The IPL isn’t due a mega auction until 2022, when two new franchises will be added to the league, but the players released from each team always gives an idea of what they will be looking for heading into the auction.
Here are some of the biggest talking points following yesterday’s announcements.
Steve Smith released by the Rajasthan Royals
The Royals will always have a special place in the IPL history books, winning the competition’s inaugural season back in 2008. However, the franchise have failed to reach the final ever since their famous win and have disappointed fans by not qualifying for the play-offs in 2019 and 2020.
Steve Smith was the franchise captain and second most expensive player (after Ben Stokes) in 2020. A lot of expectations were placed on the Australian batsman, as the owners were hoping he could replicate their previous Australian captain Shane Warne’s success, but it wasn’t to be as the Royals ended the season last place and Steve Smith ended the tournament with just two half centuries to his name.
Indian wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson was announced as the franchise’s captain for the 2021 season.
Suresh Raina retained by the Super Kings
The 34-year old had abruptly left the IPL’s bio secure bubble in the UAE in August and had opted out of the 2020 season due to personal reasons. Raina has been part of the successful franchise since the very beginning in 2008.
Following Harbhajan Singh’s release from the franchise after his abrupt leave in August, many speculated a similar fate for Suresh Raina, but MS Dhoni and the owners seem to firmly believe in the veteran batsman’s abilities.
CSK will be looking to go big in the auction following a poor 2020 season, which resulted in them not qualifying for the play-offs for the first time in the franchise’s history.
Lasith Malinga released by the Mumbai Indians
Lasith Malinga is perhaps the greatest bowler in the history of the Indian Premier League. With 170 wickets and six (!) titles, his numbers speak for themselves.
The end of an era, Lasith Malinga leaves behind a legacy at Mumbai Indians that may never be toppedhttps://t.co/SOBRKVl3Zn pic.twitter.com/ti1K3dckfR
— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) January 20, 2021
The Sri Lankan was expected to play another season, but decided to call it quits after a successful 2020 season. The management was hoping to get one more season out of him, but in the end the legendary T20 bowler believed this was the right time for him to step down.
Mumbai Indians has treated me like a family, supporting me 100% in every situation both on and off the field. I have collected so many memories that I cherish and I am very grateful to have played for so long for the best franchise in world cricket.
Glenn Maxwell released by Kings XI Punjab
This shouldn’t come as a surprise for anyone who watched the Kings XI Punjab last year. Maxwell was brought in as the franchise’s most expensive player the year before to provide them with some cutting edge. However, he did anything but that, failing to hit a single six the entire tournament.
Maxwell had meagre returns in IPL 2020, but his recent form for Big Bash side Melbourne Stars in the BBL is encouraging. It will be very interesting to see where he ends up next season and how the Kings XI use their already huge budget in the auction.
