IPL 2025 Retention: Shreyas Iyer giving folks a heart attack as future at KKR looks uncertain

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IPL 2025 Retention: How does one differentiate between fact and fiction vis a vis retentions by franchises in the Indian Premier League for the 2025 season?

With the deadline nearing and the clock ticking every minute, one man who has generated enormous hype is Shreyas Iyer, who won the trophy for Shah Rukh Khan's side, Kolkata Knight Riders, against Sunrisers Hyderabad this May in Chennai.

It is well known, that Shreyas led from the front and the joke was how two 'Madrasis,' Shreyas and Varun Chakravarthy (21 wickets) featured in KKR triumphing.

First things first, the IPL teams and local flavour are alien to each other. No team owner picks players based on love from their own city. If that is the case, how many people from the state of Bengal play for KKR?

Back to Shreyas, his is the most curious case in Indian cricket. Extremely talented, he did well for himself and KKR in the 2024 season. What has set the cat among the pigeons is his own 'search' for offers from other teams. Fact or fiction, nobody knows, Shreyas included.

If it is true that Mumbaikar is looking at other options in the IPL, there is nothing wrong with it. IPL team owners are businessmen first and then cricket lovers, whoever they are. Sample this, so many of the owners in the IPL have invested in teams abroad.

Indian players cannot play in it, which is the BCCI rule. Till now, if players have been at the mercy of owners, what is the harm in them looking around, ahead of the retentions, There are more like Shreyas testing waters.

Shreyas has been ignored by Indian cricket. He is not getting a berth in any format, even though he is a good player. He has been part of the Mumbai team this Ranji season and has been scoring runs but not being part of the main Indian teams seems a curse. Sample this, youngsters who have done well in the IPL get picked to represent India. Not Shreyas. Why?

Is he useless or there are people who think he is irrelevant to Indian cricket? Shreyas is at that stage in his career where based on the IPL 2024 performance as skipper alone, he will get offers from the other teams. If he is giving a hard time to SRK (Shah Rukh Khan), there is nothing wrong.

SRK may love Shreyas. If that were the case, he could have made it clear that Shreyas would be retained. Team owners, scouts, coaches and CEOs are ruthless. Hire and fire, sack, these are HR parlances which work well in the IPL.

At a time when India still have to play one Test against the Kiwis in Mumbai, starting from November 1, if Shreyas Iyer is making headlines, it shows he is important. Team owners make money, in several ways.

One never knows the exact monetary numbers in terms of sponsorship, brand value, and what they make through the sale of merchandise. It's big business. Perhaps, in a long time, it is good to read one player who is winning captain of the KKR, Shreyas Iyer is in good demand.

This should teach a lesson to IPL owners. Eventually, if Shreyas stays back at KKR, he would have worked on a good deal for himself.