IPL retentions have taken place and eight franchises have announced the players, which they have retained for the upcoming season. November 30 was the deadline but the list was partially released earlier. However, the confirmed list was announced at 9.30 pm IST on the official broadcasting channel, Star Sports.
A total of 27 players were retained by eight teams and this includes 19 Indians and eight foreign players. Only Punjab Kings is the team to not retain any foreign players and on the other hand, KKR has retained two overseas players.
Ravindra Jadeja, Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant have been retained in the highest bracket for INR 16 crore. Virat Kohli followed with INR 15 crore and Kane Williamson along with Sanju Samson has been retained for INR 14 crore.
The retention of some crucial players was predictable but a few big-ticket players couldn’t board their team bus, which was shocking. Some rookie players got picked by their respective franchises for a lucrative amount in the recently concluded IPL retention. Let’s have a look at the list of players who received a hefty pay rise check before the IPL 2022 auction:
- Abdul Samad (Sunrisers Hyderabad)
The SRH youngster, Abdul Samad is one of the three players to get retained by the franchise. The player was heavily backed by Irfan Pathan and his efforts did not go in vain. Last season, Samad scored 111 runs in 11 matches. Sunrisers Hyderabad has retained him for INR 4 crore. He was picked by the franchise only for INR 20 lakh.
2. Arshdeep Singh (Punjab Kings)
While everyone was looking for KL Rahul in the retention list of Punjab Kings, this news came as a surprise. The Punjabi player has played for the franchise 23 times to date and will continue to play. Not to forget he was also a part of the U-19 World Cup-winning squad in 2018. He had a wonderful outing last season where he picked 18 wickets in just 12 matches. Arshdeep Singh has been retained for INR 4 crore. He was bought by the Punjab-based team for INR 20 lakh.
3. Umran Malik Sunrisers (Sunrisers Hyderabad)
This bloke hadn’t touched a cricket ball until he was 17. He got recognized by Irfan Pathan and since then there’s no stopping. Umran was picked by SRH for just INR 10 lakh. Although he just played three matches for the side last year, his potential was visible. The 12 blazing overs, which he bowled was good enough for Sunrisers Hyderabad to retain him. He received all the fame when he delivered the fastest ball by an Indian in the history of the IPL. This youngster’s story is just beginning and is on the right path to glory. He got retained for INR 4 crore.
4. Ruturaj Gaikwad (Chennai Super Kings)
Chennai Super Kings had two options, either to go with the youngster or the legend Faf Du Plessis, who has always performed for the franchise. It was tough, but the team backed the winner of the last year’s orange cap. Gaikwad scored 635 runs from 16 matches in the CSK’s title-winning season. He was bought for INR 20 lakh in the 2019 auction but now he will receive INR 6 crore.
5. Venkatesh Iyer (Kolkata Knight Riders)
The reason why Kolkata Knight Riders couldn’t hold onto Shubman Gill. Brendon McCullum always had one eye on him but couldn’t unleash him in the first half of the tournament which was played in India. KKR underperformed and were clearly out of the competition until this man arrived and changed the game for them, literally.
He smashed 370 runs from 10 matches. Iyer was paid INR 20 lakh in the last season before the SRK owned team decided to retain him for the sum of INR 8 crore.
