Player Retention Strategies: Which IPL Stars are on the Chopping Block Before the Auction?

With the IPL Retention Deadline date approaching on 15th November, all IPL Franchises are looking to finalise their retained players for the 2026 season. Unlike previous years, there’s no limit on the retention of Indian capped players, uncapped talent and overseas players. However, all franchises are required to adhere to the squad size (maximum 25 players) and salary cap (120 crore) to ensure fair play. The IPL mini-auction is most likely scheduled for 15th Dec 2025. 

There’s been news of recent trades also taking place amongst a few franchises with big news breaking about Rajasthan Royals’ Sanju Samson with Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran of the Chennai Super Kings but that is a separate discussion. 

P.S. All stats have been taken from www.iplT20.com 

Here we talk about the 10 IPL players that might be released by their respective franchises to reduce high wage bills of underperforming players and building a well- balanced squad for the upcoming season.

Venkatesh Iyer (Kolkata Knight Riders)

Venkatesh Iyer was bought by KKR for a whopping INR 23.75 crore in the IPL mega-auction. This was a huge rise from his INR 8 crore in the previous seasons and seemed like a massive gamble for the all-rounder who had two good seasons. Iyer underperformed massively in the 2025 season. In 11 games, he scored a meagre 142 runs at an average of 20.29 and wasn’t even trusted with the bowling, not being given a single over by the KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane. 

Iyer proved to be a costly mistake for KKR which also hurt their chances of building a well-balanced squad and hence it could be likely that the Kolkata-based franchise will part ways with the young allrounder to free up the purse in order to get some good buys in the mini-auction. 

Heinrich Klassen (SunRisers Hyderabad)

The SunRisers Hyderabad retained the explosive South African wicketkeeper-batsman Heinrich Klassen for a massive INR 23 Crore in the IPL Mega-Auction for his match-winning ability in the lower middle order. Klassen didn’t really disappoint with the bat either, scoring 487 runs in 13 games with an average of 44.27 with a strike-rate of 172.70 with a century to his name. 

However, SRH have a strong batting lineup ahead of him that can score at a high strike-rate and compile high-scores and also chase down high targets. The Hyderabad-based franchise might be looking to offload the highly-priced South African to free up their wage bill in order to secure allrounders or bowlers to strike a title winning combination. 

Glenn Phillips (Gujarat Titans)

Kiwi batter Glenn Phillips might also be released by the Gujarat Titans ahead of the mini-auction. Phillips was brought in by GT on the premise that he was an explosive middle-order batter and an exceptional fielder. He went unsold in the first round but GT bought him for a decent INR 2 crore in the accelerated round. However, Phillips didn’t play much as a groin injury sustained during a game against SRH ruled him out for the season. 

GT might be looking to part ways with the Kiwi hard-hitter to find other options and address the gaps in the squad.              

Mayank Yadav (Lucknow Super Giants)

Talented young pacer Mayank Yadav took the cricket world by storm in the 2024 season with his wily pace and impressive bowling.  Based on his performances, he was rewarded by the Lucknow Super Giants with a bumper INR 11 Crore package which was a massive upgrade from his base price signing of 20 Lakhs in 2022. 

However, Injury issues have kept the youngster out almost the entire season and he struggled to perform. In the two games he played, he conceded 100 runs with an economy rate of 12.50 and took only two wickets. 

Due to his unavailability due to being injury-prone, LSG might move on from the young pacer and free up the funds to get in reinforcements. 

Shimron Hetmeyer (Rajasthan Royals)

West Indian explosive finisher Shimron Hetmeyer was bought by the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL mega-auction for an enormous sum of INR 11 crore as he had proved his worth in the earlier seasons. 

Much was expected from such a big money signing but Hetmeyer disappointed with inconsistent performances and could only amass 239 runs in 14 games with an average of 21.73. Though his strike-rate was decent at 145.73, Hetmeyer couldn’t help his team make the playoffs even. 

Hence, it feels like RR might want to part ways with the left-hander and bring in players that can help the team perform better. 

T Natarajan (Delhi Capitals)

T Natarajan was a revelation at the SunRisers Hyderabad and the Tamil Nadu-based pacer impressed one and all with his ability to bowl consistent Yorkers at the death and taking wickets. 2024 was his best season in the IPL where he took 19 wickets to help SRH reach the final. Looking at his ability, Delhi Capitals went for the bowler in the mega-auction ahead of the 2025 season. DC secured his services for a massive fee of INR 10.75 Crore. 

However, due to consistent injury issues, Natarajan couldn’t be available for selection and ended up playing only 1 game all season where his lack of game time showed as he conceded 49 runs in 4 overs without taking a wicket. No doubt that Natarajan is a fine T20 bowler but his injury-prone nature could force DC to release him and get replacements that can play more games. 

Liam Livingstone (Royal Challengers Bengaluru)

English allrounder Liam Livingstone’s hitting ability is second to none. When on song, the Englishman can be a match-winning asset. In addition, he is a decent part-timer that can get you wickets with his intelligent bowling. However, it’s the lack of consistency that has really been his weakness.

Due to his all-round abilities, RCB splurged INR 8.75 crore on the Englishman and even though RCB finally ended their long wait for the IPL trophy, Livingstone’s contributions were negligible with both the bat and the ball. In the 10 matches that he played, he amassed a total of 112 runs at an average of 26 and strike-rate of 133.33 which is way beyond his ability. Even with the ball, he took only two wickets in these 10 games. 

Hence, it feels like this association could be broken by RCB as Livingstone hasn’t performed as per the hype. With the funds freed up, RCB can look at cheaper all-round options who can justify their price-tag. 

Deepak Chahar (Mumbai Indians)

Deepak Chahar is another story of a talented player whose body isn’t fit enough to sustain a season. Chahar came into the limelight at CSK under MS Dhoni where he spent seven long years. He was Dhoni’s go-to strike bowler in the powerplay and mostly picked up big wickets. In addition, Chahar is a decent batter too and even received a call-up for Team India in the ODI format. 

MI paid a whopping INR 9.75 crore for the Indian pacer but even though Chahar stayed fit this season, he couldn’t perform for the Mumbai-based franchise. In the 14 games he played, he took 11 wickets, giving away 376 runs with a high economy-rate of 9.17. 

Chahar has been very inconsistent with his performances and unfortunately there’s uncertainty of him getting injured. Hence, MI might look to release him, use the money wisely and build a well-balanced squad for the new season. 

Devon Conway (Chennai Super Kings)

New Zealand opener Devon Conway is a top-class batsman who helped CK win the 2023 IPL title as he was the highest run-getter that season and CSK trusted him to continue in the opening slot ahead of the 2025 IPL season. The Chennai-based franchise retained Conway for INR 6.25 crore. 

However, CSK couldn’t get going in the 2025 season, and both the team and the player didn’t perform. Conway was dropped after 6 games where he failed to perform. In 6 games, the Kiwi opener could only manage 156 runs at an average of 26 and a strike-rate of 131.09. With CSK trying to get Sanju Samson who is an IPL Proven opener, Conway could be released by the franchise and reinforcements could be brought in to bolster the squad. 

Glenn Maxwell (Punjab Kings)

Glenn Maxwell is an enigma of a player. On his day, the Aussie is a match-winner who can singlehandedly win you games, on others he seems average. If only Maxwell was consistent, he would have been undeniably one of the best players in the world. Maxwell is also one of the best fielders in world cricket. 

Hopping from one IPL team to another hasn’t helped him recently due to under performing and unavailability. Last season, PBKS secured his services for a decent price of INR 4.2 crore but Maxwell suffering an unfortunate finger injury ruled him out for the entire season. It looks likely that PBKS might not retain the 37-year-old and want to replace him with a young talent or a proven IPL performer who could help the team bridge the gaps in the squad.