IPL 2025 Retention: The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 champion Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are unlikely to retain their title-winning skipper Shreyas Iyer and all-rounder Andre Russell and the most expensive catch ever in the history of IPL, Mitchell Starc, ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction.

As per a report in ESPNcricinfo, the franchise will retain star all-rounder Sunil Narine, power-hitter Rinku Singh, spinner Varun Chakravarthy and uncapped fast bowler Harshit Rana.

Starc, who they had bought for the record price of INR 24.75 crore at the IPL 2024 auction, is on his way out from. The Australia pacer had a wretched league phase before delivering his vital performances with figures of 3/34 and 2/14, which came in KKR's wins in Qualifier 1 and in the IPL 2024 final.

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Meanwhile, KKR are considering retaining uncapped player Ramandeep Singh. However, if they decide to retain Ramandeep, KKR will be left with only one Right-to-Match (RTM) opportunity for a capped player at the auction. This implies they can use this single RTM card to buy back one of their emitted players, such as Iyer, Russell, or Starc.

KKR's 2024 title triumph was fueled by Iyer's leadership and batting prowess, yielding 351 runs at 147 strike rate. Andre Russell's contribution to the club was highlighted by his spectacular batting and 19 wickets, including three in the final.

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Narine, Rinku, and Varun have been retained by KKR, recognizing their vital contributions. Notably, Narine claimed Rs 6 crore in 2022 and proved key player in KKR's success, earning the Most Valuable Player award in 2024 with his explosive batting and 17 wickets at a 6.69 economy rate earned him the 2024 MVP award.