IPL 2022: Unlucky Playing 11 that missed being retained by Franchises

The IPL Retention is one of the most decorated events that happen every year. The excitement doubles when holds are ahead of Mega Auctions. IPL 2022 is going to be a mega auction, and the existing 8 have announced their retentions, and the two new teams are supposed to announce them in a few weeks.

Many exciting talents have been shortlisted ahead of the mega auction. All-time favorites like Rohit Sharma, MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, and Rishabh Pant were among the most high-profile names to be shortlisted. A total of 27 players have been retained by the franchises, including 8 foreign players.

Although the retentions mostly occurred on the expected lines, many names were not retained. There were many reasons for their non-retention like team limit, expected salary not met, expected role not fulfilled, personal ambitions, etc. All these reasons led many players not to be selected.

So, in this article, we are looking at 11 unlucky players who missed out on the IPL 2022. Overall player 11 is selected considering the combination of 2 openers, 3-4 strikers medium order, a minimum of 1 all-rounder and spinner, and a minimum of 3 pacers.

First Order: KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, and Faf du Plessis
If there is a player who deserved not only to get the highest payout but also to be retained as the first pick retention for any team. The player’s name is KL Rahul. The sleek fly-half who was part of the Punjab Kings for the past 4 years has been the best hitter in recent years. However, personal ambitions meant the Punjab Kings couldn’t retain KL Rahul even though they thought of giving him a lucrative salary.

The second name on the list is Delhi’s South Paw, Shikhar Dhawan. The sleek southpaw has been one of the most consistent hitters alongside KL Rahul over the past couple of years. Were it not for his age, Shikhar Dhawan would have made it into the top 4 retentions for the Delhi Capitals. Moreover, Dhawan may have demanded a higher salary, which could be the reason for his non-retention.

Similar to Shikhar Dhawan, Faf du Plessis has been one of the most consistent hitters of the past two years. Faf must consider himself unlucky because without the 4-player rule, Faf would definitely have been retained by CSK. If IPL had allowed a fifth player, Faf would have been the name without a doubt. Hopefully CSK will buy it back at the mega auction.

Unhappy Warner:
Apart from these 3, there is another name that should have been kept at all costs. It’s David Warner. The Orange Cap owner on three of the last six IPL appearances and the captain who brought glory to the Sunrisers in 2016 has been the victim of mismanagement by SRH.

After his lack of runs in a few games in 2022, SRH not only removed him from the captaincy but also removed him from the squad. Warner may be released, but he will be one of the strongest performers in the IPL 2022 mega auction. He may also be retained by one of the two new franchises.

Intermediate order: Shreyas Iyer (C), Ishan Kishan, and Hardik Pandya
The man who made Delhi Capitals what it is now, Shreyas Iyer has to be the unluckiest player in the IPL. He successfully managed the Delhi Capitals in 2019 and 2020 and was expected to manage in 2021 as well. But luck has its way as Shreyas got injured, and Rishabh Pant seized this opportunity with both hands. Even though Shreyas returned in the second half, management was keen to continue with Pant.

Thus, the captain who built the Delhi Capitals team was not in the running for the captaincy for 2022. This led to the breakdown of a strong bond between the Delhi Capitals and Shreyas Iyer. While Iyer wanted to be retained as captain only, the Delhi Capitals were not interested. We would now see Shreyas Iyer hopefully captain another strong IPL team.

Mumbai Indian duo of Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya were one of the top contenders to be retained for IPL 2022. But due to the restrictions of only 4 players, MI could not retain them and instead opted for Suryakumar Yadav, who could be Mumbai’s captain. Indian Post, Rohit Sharma. Without a doubt, if there were 6 players to choose from, Hardik and Kishan would have succeeded.

Turners: Rashid Khan and Yuzvendra Chahal
If there was one bowler who could have been retained by any team, it is Rashid Khan. The world’s best spinner reportedly denied being selected as a second-choice option for SRH. With SRH opting for Kane Williamson, Rashid Khan had no choice but to say no to retention. Too bad SRH management let go of another game-winner outside of Warner.

When it comes to India’s current top spinner in the IPL, Yuzi Chahal’s name would be right on top. One of the most consistent players with the ball for RCB was not favored for retention as RCB opted for Mohammed Siraj instead. RCB certainly could have thought of keeping Chahal as the fourth player, but for that, RCB had to pay INR 9 Cr which they couldn’t afford.

Pacers: Jofra Archer, Harshal Patel and Mohammed Shami
Jofra Archer’s name in Unlucky Game 11 might come as a surprise to some as he did not feature in 2021. But IPL 2020 Most Valuable Player could have been retained as the first choice foreign player for the Rajasthan Royals if not for his injury. Archer is not expected to get in shape for the next 6 months, and it made sense not to hold him back.

Mohammed Shami has been a constant performer for PBKS over the past two years. The main reason for his non-retention could be the demand for a high salary, which PBKS could not afford. So buying Shami at auction made more sense.

The last pacing option was a battle between Kagiso Rabada and Harsha Patel. Team dynamics and most recent performances were favored when selecting one. Harshal was the winner of the Purple Cap in 2021 by a large margin. While Rabada had a lower than normal 2021 IPL. From the team’s perspective, Harshal’s stakes were higher in RCB than Rabada’s stakes in Delhi Capitals. Thus, the reason why Harshal is more unlucky to miss compared to Rabada.

Apart from the above, some solid players who could have been picked are David Warner, Devdutt Padikkal, Shubman Gill, Shahrukh Khan, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ben Stokes, Kagiso Rabada, Sam Curran, Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar, and Nitish Rana.

IPL 2022 – Unlucky Playing 11 that missed being retained by Franchises:

KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Faf du Plessis, Shreyas Iyer (C), Ishan Kishan (WK), Hardik Pandya, Rashid Khan, Jofra Archer, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal

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