The IPL 2021 auction will take place on February 11 and the BCCI has given January 20 as the final deadline for retention and release of players.
The BCCI reportedly has given teams the deadline of January 20 to submit the list of players to be retained and released as the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021's auction is set to be held on February 11 at a venue not yet decided.
The franchise will now be in work mode heading into the IPL 2021 as they will be wanting the best players in order to win the coveted cup.
Now heading into the IPL 2021 auction, which players are likely to be released and which players might be retained, an explainer of all these factors. The team here in focus is Kings XI Punjab.
Kings XI Punjab squad in IPL 2020
KL Rahul (c), Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, Karun Nair, Sarfaraz Khan, Mandeep Singh, Sheldon Cottrell, Ishan Porel, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Shami, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Arshdeep Singh, Hardus Viljoen, M Ashwin, J Suchith, Harpreet Brar, Darshan Nalkande, Glenn Maxwell, James Neesham, Chris Jordan, Krishnappa Gowtham, Deepak Hooda, Tajinder Singh Dhillon, Nicholas Pooran, Prabhsimran Singh.
Players to be retained
The obvious choices to retain at the Kings XI Punjab camp would be KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Mohammed Shami, Ravi Bishnoi, Nicholas Pooran, Mandeep Singh, Chris Jordan, Murugan Ashwin, Arshdeep Singh.
The skipper KL Rahul had been in top form in the 13th edition along with his Karnataka teammate Mayank Agarwal. The two were among the top run-scorers of the IPL 2020.
As for Shami, he was one of the best pacers in IPL 2020. Moreover, he is an experienced cricketer and the perfect candidate to lead a bowling attack. He had spinner Ravi Bishnoi who was fresh out of the U19 World Cup squad and was one of the bright youngsters of the IPL.
The other players who could also be retained would be Chris Gayle, Deepak Hooda, James Neesham, Krishnappa Gowtham, J Suchith, Tajinder Singh Dhillon, Darshan Nalkande.
Players that could be released
When it comes to players to be released, Glenn Maxwell could be at the top of the list as he was the biggest flop of IPL 2020. The Aussie struggled and only managed 108 runs off 106 balls. The big-hitting batsman failed to hit even one six.
The other person who could be shown the door would be Sheldon Cottrell. The salute master managed to take only six wickets in six matches. The team management had spent Rs 8.5 crore on him, but the Jamaican turned out to be a big upset.
Mujeeb Ur Rahman who had remained on the bench for 12 of the 14 games could also be released. In the 2 games that he played, the Afghanistan spinner conceded 83 runs without picking up a single wicket.
Other players who will be shown exit door would also be Sarfaraz Khan, Karun Nair, Ishan Porel, Hardus Viljoen, Prabhsimran Sing.
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