A total of 85 players were released by the 10 Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises ahead of the IPL 2023 auction, which will take place on December 23 in Kochi. But there were a few surprise releases.
Amongst those 85 released players, many are a key part of their international teams and bring in plenty on the table. Therefore, fans have been trying to figure out as to why the franchise made such big decisions by letting some big names in international cricket leave.
Here are 5 surprise releases by franchises ahead of the IPL 2023 auction:
Jason Holder
A lanky 31-year-old seam-bowling all-rounder who can bowl with the new ball and in the death, can bat in different positions and is capable of hitting the ball in the stands, and who is a former captain of his international side – Jason Holder’s release by the Lucknow Super Giants has made fans scratch their heads.
LSG bid aggressively for Holder in the last IPL 2022 mega-auction and bought him for 8.75 crore, which is a good deal for LSG given quality pace-bowling all-rounders are rare and not always available to play in the IPL, unlike Holder.
The West Indian also had a good IPL 2022 season: 14 wickets in 12 matches at a slightly expensive economy of 9.42; and it’s not Holder’s fault that the Lucknow management batted him way down the order than the positions he should be batting.
Kane Williamson
The reasons for Kane Williamson’s exclusion are justifiable, however, it still is quite a big omission for a player who Sunrisers Hyderabad were adamant to keep as their first retention – in the 14 crore bracket – instead of Rashid Khan, who wanted that bracket and then left after not being given it and went to Gujarat and helped them lift the trophy.
Yes, Kane Williamson is having a torrid time in T20 cricket this year: he had an average of 19 and a strike rate of 93 in IPL 2022, and has a strike rate of 109 in all T20s in 2022. SRH also finished third to last in the IPL.
But leaving out their captain and key batter after a poor show in just one season just vindicates the criticism which SRH got last time when they retained Williamson over Rashid, that their think-tank messed up big time. They let go of a T20 match-winner plus a future captain, and now their current captain is also released.
Dwayne Bravo
There is little doubt that CSK will try to buy back their stalwart Dwayne Bravo at the upcoming IPL 2023 auction. They had bought the all-rounder for 4.4 crore in the last mega-auction, but the leading wicket-taker in the history of the IPL, Bravo was released by the franchise he’d had most of his success in the IPL at.
In a tough IPL 2022 season endured by CSK when they were second-last, Bravo was still their bright spot, picking up 16 wickets in 10 matches and taking care of the death overs responsibility. However, CSK decided to release Bravo, surprising all their fans.
They might also think they would buy him back for a price lesser than 4.4 crore, however, the other franchises must also know this and they would push their bids higher.
Chris Jordan
Another surprise release by CSK is that of Chris Jordan. While Jordan couldn’t make an impact in the IPL 2022 – 2 wickets in 4 matches – he was only given a handful of games to show his mettle in the death overs, the most difficult phase for a bowler.
Chris Jordan is a world-renowned T20 specialist pacer, having years of experience in this format and having proven himself smart and skillful in the death overs. For England stuck with him despite last year’s disappointing show, and Jordan delivered two brilliant performances for England in the knockouts of the T20 World Cup 2022 – 3/43 vs India in the semi-final and 2/27 vs Pakistan in the final.
So Jordan’s release was a surprise. Releasing all of Bravo, Jordan, and also New Zealand’s Adam Milne, it is clear that CSK will go after overseas pacers in the auction, the price of which the other franchises would be happy to raise higher.
Mayank Agarwal
After disappointing results as a captain in his maiden season and also with the bat, senior batter Mayank Agarwal has been released by the Punjab Kings, who have now named Shikhar Dhawan as the new skipper.
Agarwal struggled with the bat in the IPL 2022 – average of 16 and a strike rate of 122, and even shifted himself down the order in the end – and clearly the captaincy pressure bogged him down. However, Punjab did what they do the worse of all: show little faith in proven players to regain form.
Agarwal had been their key batsman since 2018, bossing the role of the aggressor, while KL Rahul first and Shikhar Dhawan next played the anchor role. While Agarwal getting sacked as the captain was predictable, his being released entirely is quite a surprise.
