IPL 2024: KKR May Release This Indian All-Rounder On Players' Retention D-Day

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Kolkata Knight Riders made a major change in support staff by including former captain Gautam Gambhir as the mentor. With the shuffle, some major releases are expected on the deadline day of the transfer window, and players' retention list. This may include a capped Indian all-rounder as well, reported Cricbuzz.

The report further stated that KKR, who finished a disappointing seventh last season, may let go of Tim Southee, and Lockie Ferguson among foreign names while India's World Cup 2023 member Shardul Thakur is also expected to make place for further money to save for the auction.

However, KKR are unlikely to let go of their star all-rounder Andre Russell while Thakur is out of favour after a dismal show last season. Thakur was included in the World Cup squad as a backup for pace all-rounder Hardik Pandya but the management showed little faith in him once Pandya was injured.

Shardul Thakur, who moved to KKR from Delhi Capitals in a swap with Aman Khan before IPL 2023, failed to make a telling impact except for a lightning 29-ball 68 against Royal Challengers Bangalore. The all-rounder, whose primary role is of a bowler, took just seven wickets in 11 games.

As per News18, KKR are likely to release a list of players including Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Lockie Ferguson, Umesh Yadav, Tim Southee, Anukul Roy, David Wiese, Kulwant Khejroliya, Litton Das, Mandeep Singh, Shakib Al Hasan, Aarya Desai.

Shreyas Iyer will continue to be the face of Kolkata Knight Riders with Rinku Singh and Nitish Rana in key roles. Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Varun Chakravarthy left a strong impression last season and will remain a pivotal part of the Eden Gardens-based setup. Apart from them, Suyash Sharma and Venkatesh Iyer will remain key components.

KKR's likely retention list

Shreyas Iyer, Nitish Rana, Rinku Singh, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Venkatesh Iyer, Shardul Thakur, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy, N Jagadeesan, Suyash Sharma, Vaibhav Arora