Shreyas Iyer, who won Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) their third IPL title in IPL 2024, might not be retained by his franchise ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction.
The Mumbai batter has shown to be a strong negotiator in talks with the team's management, causing the defending champions to appear to give up on their skipper.
It is now guaranteed that he will not be included on KKR's retention list, which will be presented to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Thursday. While the possibility of using the Right to Match (RTM) card remains, it is for another day - more specifically, the time of the auction, which will be sometime next month.
With IPL franchises preferring Indian captains to foreigners, reports have suggested that Shreyas Iyer has been approached by a couple of teams.
Cricbuzz has reported that Iyer requested an outrageous fee. While it is understandable to have a heightened picture of one's CV, IPL pros typically discuss if the facts - fitness issues, recent performances, and current international status - exactly stack up before making a decision on a player. It is no secret that the IPL valuation is driven by extensive statistical analysis.
His current IPL salary is INR 12.25 crore, which KKR acquired in the 2022 auction. In the season, he scored 401 runs in 14 games, averaging 30.85. In the 2024 season, he scored 50 fewer runs, averaging 39, courtesy of five perfect innings. He missed the 2023 season because of a persistent back ailment that necessitated surgery.
Overall, in nine seasons and 115 games, he has 3127 runs at an average of 32.24 and a strike rate of 127.48. He is currently without a central BCCI contract and is out of the Indian team, having fallen out of favor with the national selectors after missing a Ranji Trophy match last season.
Meanwhile, several franchises have brought to the notice of the BCCI the fact that some players are engaging with other teams despite being under contracts. It is possible that the negotiations are being handled by player agents, who are known to be extremely active behind the scenes. Astronomical figures are being proposed and promised.
A likely answer is the new RTM regulation, which allows a team to raise a player's bid to a predetermined value if the franchise holding the RTM card exercises the option. There is always the risk that they will opt not to use it.
(Cricbuzz inputs)
