IPL 2022 retention: complete list of players retained by the 8 teams

The IPL player retention was the most significant step ahead of the mega auction that is going to take place for the 2022 edition of the lucrative tournament. Fans and pundits from all around the globe were scratching their heads over which players will the eight teams retain. And it indeed turned out to be one of the most perplexing retentions ever, with teams as well as the player taking a different stand for the auction to come. So without further ado, let’s dive into the list of players retained by their respective teams.

First up was RCB, who got the chance to announce their players, and it did not surprise anyone that they chose to go with their legendary batter Virat Kohli, allrounder Glenn Maxwell, and Pace bowler Mohammad Siraj. The exclusion of Yuzvendra Chahal and Harshal Patel perplexed everyone.

Mumbai Indians was the second team to announce their retention. They decided to go with four players to ensure that they had a solid base to form a team around. Their players included Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Surya Kumar Yadav, and Kieron Pollard. It was surprising to see that both the Pandya brothers alongside Trent Boult were not retained.

Punjab Kings have only retained two players in the form of Mayank Agarwal and Arshdeep Singh. With KL Rahul opting to head into the mega auction, Punjab Kings did not have many options. However, the exclusion of Ravi Bishnoi and Shahrukh Khan after a great season in the 2021 edition is unexplainable.

Last year’s bottom-dwellers, Sunrisers Hyderabad, retained just three players. It was unprecedented to see them going with two uncapped players in the form of Abdul Samad and Umran Malik. They did retain Kane Williamson, who will also be their captain, but they still have a task at hand while heading into the mega auction.

The champions of last year, Chennai Super Kings, were spoilt for choice about whom to retain and whom to let go. But it did not come as a surprise that they chose to retain Ravindra Jadeja, ahead of MS Dhoni. They must be planning to form a team around Jadeja in the coming years. While the other two players retained by CSK were Moeen Ali and Ruturaj Gaikwad. Yet again, Deepak Chahar and Shadul Thakur’s absence from the list will remain a talking point.

2020’s finalist Delhi Capitals, who have grown several folds in the past few years, also decided to retain four players. It contained their captain for last season, Rishabh Pant, Axar Patel, Prithvi Shaw, and Anrich Nortje. They, too, left out Kagiso Rabada, Marcus Stoinis, and Ashwin, who have been some of their marquee players in recent years.

Kolkata Knight Riders, who emerged as the dark horse in last year’s IPL, also decided to go with four players. Their first retention was Andre Russel, followed by Venkatesh Iyer, Varun Chakravarthy, and Sunil Narine. They were the only team who decided not to retain their captain, Eoin Morgan. The absence of Shubman Gill from the list was also unexpected.

Rajasthan Royals were the last team on the list, and they decided to retain three of their players. The first one on their list was their captain Sanju Samson, followed by explosive batter Jos Buttler and uncapped player Yashasvi Jaiswal. Ben Stokes was missing from the list, perhaps due to his recent absence from the international circuit following an injury.

The team retention has ensured that the mega auction is going to be gigantic. All the ten teams will be going neck to neck to make the most of this auction and set up a team for the coming years.