IPL 2018: Top performers who missed out from a retention

Before the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018 retentions, there were several speculations surrounding the players who would be kept by their franchises. The event saw the teams retain cricketers of their choices. While there were players who were expectantly retained, the franchises sprang a few surprises by retaining uncapped players. However, several players who have been an integral element of their franchises over the years have missed out. Nevertheless, all is not lost for the players as the auctions will be held a couple of weeks down the line on the 27 and 28 January. In our article, we take a look at five major performers who couldn’t find a place in the initial retentions. #5 Ajinkya Rahane Ajinkya Rahane. (Photo Source: Twitter) Ajinkya Rahane has been an instrumental performer at the top order in the Indian Premier League. With several significant scores under his belt, he has grabbed the headlines on several occasions. He played for the Mumbai Indians to start his IPL campaign but didn’t get enough opportunities. Thereafter he moved to Rajasthan Royals which launched his cricketing career significantly. However, after Rajasthan’s two-year suspension, the right-handed batsman was grabbed by Rising Pune Supergiant where he didn’t disappoint either. Before the retentions, it was expected that Rahane would be retained by the Royals ahead of their comeback season. However, to his dismay, he wasn’t considered as the Royals went for only Steve Smith, the current Aussie skipper, who has been in prime form recently. #4 Kieron Pollard Kieron Pollard. (Photo Source: Twitter) Kieron Pollard forayed into international cricket with a swashbuckling ton against the New South Wales Blues in the Champions League T20. Thereafter, he was picked by the Mumbai Indians and ever since he has played several match-winning knocks for the team. At the middle-order, he has turned out to be a nightmare for many bowlers. His strike-rate hovers around the 140 mark which makes him a deadly prospect for oppositions. He has been a fixture in the Mumbai Indians side and has been pivotal to many of their triumphs. Even in a star-studded team like Mumbai Indians, Pollard was expected to be retained. However, Mumbai went for Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya- the current big guns of Indian cricket, especially in limited overs cricket. #3 Chris Lynn Chris Lynn. (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images) Chris Lynn is arguably one of the most destructive batsmen going around in world cricket. The Queenslander lit up the Big Bash League with his six-hitting spree, following which he was sent to open for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the last season of the IPL. The gamble immediately paid dividends as Lynn laid into the Gujarat Lions attack in KKR’s opening game. However, he suffered an injury, which kept him out for nearly a month. However, he came back and carried over from where he left. He was expected to be retained by the Shah Rukh Khan-owned franchise, but missed out to the Caribbean prodigies- Sunil Narine and Andre Russell. However, it won’t be bewildering if the Knights apply the Right-to-Match card for the Australian batsman. #2 Robin Uthappa Robin Uthappa. (Photo Source: Twitter) Robin Uthappa has carved a reputation for himself as a dependable wicket-keeper batsman. He started his career in the Indian Premier League, playing for the Mumbai, however, couldn’t get many opportunities. Later, he moved to the Royal Challengers Bangalore. Subsequently, he discussed out some breezy knocks for the Vijay Mallya-owned franchise. However, after a couple of seasons, the Karnataka batsman was grabbed by the Kolkata Knight Riders. Moreover, he brought some major changes in his technique which escalated his stature as a cricketer. He wasn’t in the best of nicks, yet racked up nearly 400 runs at a strike rate of 165- his best in all seasons of the IPL. He was another of those unlucky cricketers who weren’t retained by their respective franchises. #1 Rashid Khan Rashid Khan of Sunrisers Hyderabad. (Photo Source: Twitter) Rashid Khan has undoubtedly taken giant strides into international cricket. His performances for Afghanistan earned him a spot in the Sunrisers Hyderabad team. He was bagged for a whopping four crores by the David Warner-led franchise. He made an impact immediately as batsmen found it an arduous task to decipher his tricks with the ball. Batsmen respected him and hardly trod the aggressive route against him. Subsequently, the young leggie ended with decent figures on almost every occasions. He was effortless Hyderabad’s gun bowler during IPL 2017. However, quite surprisingly, he wasn’t retained by his franchise. However, with Rashid going great guns in cricket, he is expected to be one of the hot picks in the auctions on January 27-28 at Bangalore.

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IPL 2018: Top performers who missed out from a retention

We take a look at five major performers who couldn’t find a place in the initial retentions.

#2 Robin Uthappa

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