 "Mumbai Indians' Rohit Sharma plays a shot during the Indian Premier League cricket match between Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad in Mumbai, India, Monday, May 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade)")
Five-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Mumbai Indians are reportedly likely to retain Rohit Sharma despite the senior opener hinting at having made his final appearance in the iconic blue-and-gold jersey last season. Meanwhile, the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) are to take a call on retaining skipper KL Rahul ahead of the player retention deadline.
India Test and ODI skipper Rohit had been stripped of captaincy after Mumbai Indians lost to Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 2 of IPL 2023, with the joint-most successful team in IPL history bringing GT captain Hardik Pandya on-board following a blockbuster trade in November and naming him the new captain.
Rohit, who had captained MI in each of their five title triumphs, was reportedly miffed with the team management and was expected to part ways with the franchise after the conclusion of the 17th season this year, in which Mumbai Indians finished at the bottom of the 10-team table in Pandya’s maiden season in charge.
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According to a report on The Indian Express, however, Rohit is likely to be one of MI’s four retentions along with captain Pandya as well as India T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav and pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah. MI thus will end up spending Rs 61 crore if they proceed with the above retention list.
MI had recently welcome Mahela Jayawardene back as head coach, with the Sri Lankan batting legend having previously served in the role from 2017 to 2022, signalling the end of Mark Boucher’s reign that lasted two seasons.
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The report further mentions that the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), the team that had reached the playoffs in its first two seasons in the IPL after debuting alongside GT in 2022, are keen on retaining explosive West Indian wicketkeeper-batter Nicholas Pooran. The franchise, however, is yet to arrive at a decision over retaining captain Rahul, who had been criticised for his leadership as well as his strike rate last season.
LSG are also reportedly keen on retaining two uncapped players – middle-order batter Ayush Badoni and pacer Mohsin Khan.
All 10 franchises will have to submit their list of retained players by the 31 October deadline set by the BCCI, with the IPL Governing Council allowing franchises to retain up to six players from their existing squad — either through direct retention or through Right To Match (RTM).
The board has not set a cap on the number of overseas players that can be retained though at least one of them will have to be an uncapped player, who will cost the franchise Rs 4 crore.