5 surprising releases by IPL franchises before 2025 auction

The renowned T20 cricket's megafest the Indian Premier League (IPL 2025) will enter its 18^th edition and before the action, mega auctions beckon teams. The Indian cricket's apex governing body, BCCI (Board for Control of Cricket in India) has provided franchises with a tweaked version of the retention rules. According to the latest rules, a team can retain up to six players including one uncapped player. It also provided flexibility with the previous set price cap for the players. With that in mind, after a rigorous brainstorming, the D-Day arrived. 

On October 31, all franchises of the IPL unveiled their retention lists and the development surprised many fans. Several players who were termed as sure shot retains were left out of the squad. While teams like Mumbai Indians (MI), Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) managed to contain their key players from cutting ties, several decisions were received with raised eyebrows from the cricket connoisseurs.

 Let's have a look at the top five surprising releases ahead of IPL mega auction:

5. Arshdeep Singh

Fiery pacer Arshdeep Singh was one of the key pacers for Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the IPL 2024. He made his debut for the team in 2019 and went on to play for India thereafter. He was a part of the squad until 2024 and his inclusion in the upcoming season is in the shadows as he was released by the team.

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Notably, PBKS retained only two players in the form of Shashank Singh and Prabhsimran Singh and both the batters are uncapped. This essentially meant that PBKS would enter the auction with a hefty purse of INR 110.5 crores, as they spent INR 5.5 crores and four crores on Shashank and Prabhsimran, respectively.