IPL 2022: 5 releases that might turn out to be blunders

The cash-rich Indian Premier League commences its 15th season with a massive expansion from eight to ten teams and a mega auction. The two teams from Ahmedabad and Lucknow were chosen through a competitive bidding process among interested stakeholders. CVC Capitals acquired Ahmedabad, and the RP Sanjiv Goenka Group acquired the Lucknow franchise. The existing teams could retain only four players at maximum and the two new teams will get to pick three non-retained players.

While it was certain that some star players in Rohit Sharma, MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli will be retained by their respective franchises, the retention decisions of some franchises were surprising to an extent. While many performers were retained as expected, but some star players were released ahead of the mega auctions.

Here are five surprising releases by the franchises:

5. David Warner (SRH)

A surprising but predictable decision was made by the SRH franchise to release a star player. David Warner, the franchise’s superstar and the captain was released ahead of the mega auctions. David Warner and SRH had an unbreakable bond of respect and affection towards each other. However, the relationship turned sour this year after SRH endured a disastrous season in the 14th edition of the IPL.

Warner was stripped of his captaincy duties and was even denied a place in the SRH playing XI. According to reports, he had a major disagreement with the franchise’s management over a position in the starting XI. As a result, management decided to remove Warner from his position as captain and hand over the reins to Kane Williamson.

After a difficult IPL season, Warner made a strong comeback in the T20 World Cup 2021. He was the tournament’s second-highest run-getter and was named “Player of the Tournament” for his valiant efforts in leading Australia to World Cup victory. SRH may suffer a significant loss in terms of brand value as a result of Warner’s release, as well as the loss of a marvellous player and astute captain.