IPL 2026 Retained and Released Players HIGHLIGHTS: CSK release Pathirana; KKR let go of Russell, Iyer; PBKS offload Maxwell

The release of Andre Russell into the auction pool, ending a 11-year association with Kolkata Knight Riders definitely came as headline grabber when the Indian Premier League’s retention deadline ended on Saturday. However, all said and done in a week where the IPL has seen trade window being active like never before, the biggest talking point among franchises remains around the swap deal involving Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran from Chennai Super Kings and Sanju Samson from Rajasthan Royals.

In particular, there is shock and bewilderment around Jadeja heading to Rajasthan, which is where it all started for him in 2008, where the moniker “Rockstar” was given to him by Shane Warne. The move itself was a surprise – as the all-round package that he offers is a rarity that CSK are already finding hard to replace, having made various unsuccessful attempts. But beyond all of it, Rajasthan by letting go of a key player while having readymade replacements in Vaibhav Suryavanshi as opener and Dhruv Jurel as wicketkeeper, have filled two holes by bringing in Jadeja and Curran for a lesser price than what they were paying for Samson.

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Star Indian all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja has moved from his long-term franchise, the Chennai Super Kings, to the Rajasthan Royals in a high-profile trade ahead of the IPL 2026 auction. The deal saw RR skipper Sanju Samson move in the opposite direction to CSK.

In his first reaction since returning to the franchise where he began his IPL journey in 2008, Jadeja expressed his delight.

“Rajasthan Royals gave me my first platform and my first taste of victory,” said Jadeja in an official statement. “Coming back feels special; it’s not just a team for me, it’s home. Rajasthan Royals is where I won my first IPL, and I hope to win more with this current group of players.”

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Pujara on Sanju Samson joining CSK:

“This will be an emotional moment for Sanju because he has been playing for Rajasthan Royals for so many years. But where he is going, that is CSK, they are a very welcoming unit, and they create a very welcoming environment. So, Sanju Samson will get settled at CSK very soon. That’s what I feel because I have been part of CSK. I know how the CSK environment is and how the players feel. That’s why I feel he will fit in the CSK unit very soon. And with the crowd and environment in Chennai, Sanju Samson’s game will suit the wicket a lot,” Pujara said on JioStar’s TATA IPL 2026 ‘Retention Special’.

After the retention deadline day, here's a look at the salary caps available for all the 10 teams. Mumbai Indians have the lowest, just Rs 2.75 crore, available. Meanwhile, KKR have Rs 64 crore available to splurge in the auctions.

Mumbai Indians Head Coach Mahela Jayawardene spoke about the team’s retentions and trade ins ahead of IPL 2026. Here's what he had to say:

On the retained core

When we went into the auction last year, we had a vision of how we want to go in this cycle. The retention is quite consistent with the way Mumbai usually looks at things. We have a very strong squad and we just wanted to add a few players to strengthen that. We have a very strong squad that has covered all areas. We had a very good season last year. As a coach, I’m very happy with the effort that each of them put in. There are areas that we want to improve, which we will look at. They rallied around Hardik really well last season. Hardik enjoyed that atmosphere and led the team pretty well.

On the retention strategy

Consistency is key and we built our team around a core group of players and they still remain. They are very hungry for success. Rohit, Surya, Jasprit, Hardik, Tilak, if we put that in that pool. Obviously, bringing back Trent in last season’s auction. We have players with good international experience and an international captain like Mitch Santner as well as Jacksy, all these players have contributed really well. We have still developed those young talents. Hopefully they get an opportunity to showcase their skills as well. I have always said that I take one game at a time and only focus on the present. Our focus has always been to stay in the present and create that value chain.

On bringing in Shardul Thakur, Sherfane Rutherford and Mayank Markande

They bring a wealth of experience; you need a group of guys who can handle that pressure. Sherfane brings loads of experience, he has been around for a while and been with us many years ago. Shardul is another player like that, so much of experience. He brings that experience factor and a local Mumbai boy as well as his experience playing in Wankhede will matter. Mayank has been a warrior. When he was with us, he was brilliant as part of a championship winning team. We have been looking at him for a while. We’ll know exactly the players we want to get as we enter the auction.

On the challenges of retentions

When you are a franchise, sometimes you have to get yourself emotionally detached from the decision-making process and look at what is exactly required. It’s tough to let go of players who have been with you for a season and worked hard, specially the young guys as they work really, really hard. I enjoyed working with each one of them. I phoned them personally and explained to them about the reasons because they have the right to know why they have been let go and what they need to do to improve themselves. These are the tough conversations but it’s what franchise cricket is all about. Once in Mumbai, you will always be in Mumbai. They will be in touch with us and we hope they grow going forward. Each and everyone will be missed and wishing them all the very best. I am sure they will get their opportunities going forward.

Here's a look at the purse available for each team for the IPL auction next month. Just look at the disparity in money available for the two five-time champions, Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings.

Chennai Super Kings: Rs. 43.40 crore

Mumbai Indians: Rs. 2.75 crore

Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Rs. 16.40 crore

Kolkata Knight Riders: Rs. 64.30 crore

Sunrisers Hyderabad: Rs. 25.50 crore

Gujarat Titans: Rs. 12.90 crore

Rajasthan Royals: Rs. 16.05 crore

Delhi Capitals: Rs. 21.80 crore

Lucknow Super Giants: Rs. 22.95 crore

Punjab Kings: Rs. 11.50 crore

Gujarat Titans have retained key players including captain Shubman Gill, Rashid Khan, Sai Sudharsan, Rahul Tewatia, Shahrukh Khan, Jos Buttler, Mohammed Siraj and others who remain central to the team’s plans for the new season.

As part of the squad restructuring, the franchise has released Gerald Coetzee, Karim Janat, Mahipal Lomror, Dasun Shanaka and Kulwant Khejroliya. These moves reflect the team’s focus on maintaining balance and strengthening specific areas ahead of the 2026 campaign.

Earlier, Sherfane Rutherford was traded to Mumbai Indians.

Vikram Solanki, Director of Cricket, Gujarat Titans, said: “Retention is always a strategic process and this year our aim was to secure a core that aligns with the vision of Gujarat Titans. We want continuity, balance and a strong pipeline that contributes to the future of Indian cricket. The players we’ve retained bring a mix of experience, potential and character, qualities that form the foundation of a successful franchise. This group allows us to plan with clarity as we prepare for the auction and the seasons ahead. Our commitment remains to build a stable, competitive and future-ready team. We also extend our heartfelt gratitude to the players released and wish them the very best for the next chapter in their careers.”

Gujarat Titans head coach Ashish Nehra commented: “We’ve retained a group that gives us balance and clarity as we plan for the season ahead. We appreciate the efforts of the released players and wish them well for the future.”

List of retained players: Shubman Gill (captain), Rashid Khan, Sai Sudharsan, Rahul Tewatia, Shahrukh Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Jos Buttler, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Nishant Sindhu, Kumar Kushagra, Anuj Rawat, Manav Suthar, Washington Sundar, Arshad Khan, Gurnoor Brar, Sai Kishore, Ishant Sharma, Jayant Yadav, Glenn Phillips.

Released players: Karim Janat, Kulwant Khejroliya, Gerald Coetzee, Dasun Shanaka and Mahipal Lomror

Not too many surprises for Mumbai Indians. They have obviously retained the core of the side.

Having gotten players like Sherfane Rutherford, Shardul Thakur and Mayank Markande, Mumbai have only a purse of Rs 2.75 crore left for the auction.

"Consistency is key! We built our team around a core group of players who still remain in the side. They are very hungry for success. Rohit, Surya, Hardik, Jasprit and Tilak," says Mumbai coach Mahela Jayawardhene.

Check out the full list of players traded, released and retained by Mumbai Indians here

The JSW and GMR co-owned Delhi Capitals announced that they will retain a total of 17 players from IPL 2025 side. Delhi Capitals have decided to release Mohit Sharma, Faf du Plessis, Sediqullah Atal, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Manvanth Kumar and Darshan Nalkande ahead of the upcoming season.

Where does Faf go from here? Is it the end of the IPL for him? "You never know. KKR will need a captain next season," says Anil Kumble in the JioHotstar analysis studio.

The players retained by the franchise from their last season’s fifth-place finish include Axar Patel, KL Rahul, Kuldeep Yadav, Mitchell Starc and Tristan Stubbs among others. Delhi Capitals have also roped in Nitish Rana in a trade for Donovan Ferreira, who moves to Rajasthan Royals ahead of the auction.

Speaking on the development, Kiran Kumar Grandhi, Chairman and Co-Owner, Delhi Capitals, said, “We had a promising campaign last season, the team showed great quality and spirit, even though we narrowly missed out on the playoffs. The auction gives us an opportunity to strengthen the areas where we fell short and build a more balanced squad around the players we have retained. Our coaching team and scouting network have worked extensively to identify the right talent to add to the group. My best wishes to all the players as we gear up for an exciting auction.”

Parth Jindal, Co-owner, Delhi Capitals and Founder, JSW Sports added, "We are pleased with the players we’ve retained – we saw how well they performed together especially in the first half of last season. Our coaches and scouts have been working tirelessly to identify those players who can complement our core group. We’re looking forward to the auction and building a strong team for the season ahead.”

Hemang Badani, Head Coach, Delhi Capitals, expressed, “Last season had its highs and lows, we played some really good cricket but fell just short of a playoff spot. We know the areas that need strengthening, and the auction will allow us to make those fine adjustments around the group we have retained. The goal is to build consistency and ensure we’re competing at our best throughout the season.”

List of Retained Players: Axar Patel, KL Rahul, Karun Nair, Abishek Porel, Tristan Stubbs, Sameer Rizvi, Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Ajay Mandal, Tripurana Vijay, Madhav Tiwari, Mitchell Starc, T Natarajan, Mukesh Kumar

Dushmantha Chameera, Kuldeep Yadav, Nitish Rana (traded in)

Released Players: Mohit Sharma, Faf du Plessis, Sediqullah Atal, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Manvanth Kumar,

Darshan Nalkande, Donovan Ferreira (traded out).

A look at which players are retained by Delhi and who have been released (highlighted).

Punjab Kings announced they will be releasing five players from last year’s squad. While ensuring that the core of the team remains the same, the Kings have released Glenn Maxwell, Kuldeep Sen, Josh Inglis, Aaron Hardie and Pravin Dube.

While Maxwell played his third stint with the Kings last year, Kuldeep and Aaron didn’t play any match in the last season whereas Pravin was seen in action in only one match. The management is focusing on building the next year’s strategy around its Indian core.

Speaking about the retention, head coach Ricky Ponting said, “We had a great IPL season last year and it happened because of every single player, and thus, I would like to first thank the released players for their contribution to the team.

We will now be aggressively looking to secure high-quality overseas players in the auction, who perfectly plug the defined gaps in our middle-order power-hitting and all-rounder departments. This measured approach, centered on a settled core, is designed to build a deep, balanced squad capable of challenging for the IPL title."

Satish Menon, CEO of Punjab Kings also commented on the retention and said, "We thank all the released players for their commitment to the Punjab Kings family. Our paramount goal was retaining the strong Indian core of our squad, which is absolutely essential for long-term consistency. By securing key performers like Captain Shreyas Iyer and spearhead Arshdeep Singh, we ensure stability in leadership. We will aim to execute a targeted strategy and focus on high-impact replacements.”

Here's the full list of players let go and retained by Chennai Super Kings. The headline names of players they have let go are Rahul Tripathi, Rachin Ravindra, Deepak Hooda, Vijay Shankar, Matheesha Pathirana.