A maximum of six retentions can be made before the IPL 2025 mega auction. Of these six, a maximum of five (Indian or overseas) can be capped and a maximum of two uncapped.
Gujarat Titans (GT) have done what was expected. They’ve named Shubman Gill, Rashid Khan, and Sai Sudharsan in their retention list for IPL 2025, but there are some glaring omissions. According to ESPNcricinfo, GT have decided to look past two of best best performers, Mohammed Shami and David Miller.
One doesn’t really talk much about Gill or Rashid. They pick themselves. However, Sudharsan over Miller or Shami is rather interesting. There is no doubt that the batter from Tamil Nadu is extremely talented. He’s already scored over 1000 runs for GT in just 25 matches. One can’t forget his incredible 96-run knock in the IPL 2023 Final against the Chennai Super Kings.
Is Sudharsan worth retaining over Shami and Miller? Given his age (23) and the fact that he’s yet to find his peak, the answer might be yes. We can’t forget that Shami (34) has been out of action for nearly a year, and no one really knows about his fitness. As for Miller, GT might think we’ll get him at the mega auction, and the South African isn’t a young buck (35) either.
The uncapped picks too have a shocking omission. There is no Mohit Sharma or Abhinav Manohar. Instead, GT’s gone with Shahrukh Khan, someone who hasn’t really shown how good he’s in the IPL for all his talent. Mohit like Shami finds himself at the very top of the highest wicket-takers for GT and was so good at the start of last season, many thought he should be taken to the T20 World Cup. As for Manohar, if Miller hasn’t been retained and neither has Mohit, he should have been retained. He’s a three-dimensional player who’s been in incredible form in domestic cricket. But GT’s decided to take a risk and go to IPL 2025 with Shahrukh Khan instead.
As of now, it isn’t sure how much GT has spent on these 5 retentions, but it’s expected they won’t spend less than Rs 51 crore.
- Retention No. 1 – Shubman Gill
- Retention No. 2 – Rashid Khan
- Retention No. 3 – Sai Sudharsan
- Retention No. 4 (uncapped) – Rahul Tewatia
- Retention No. 5 (uncapped) – Shahrukh Khan
- Retention No. 6 – RTM
No need for Shami & Miller?
The premier Indian pacer is their second-highest wicket-taker, and after missing IPL 2024 due to an injury, he’s been chucked away by GT. Shami was the Purple Cap winner the last he played (2023), and despite being one of the biggest reasons why they won a title in 2022 and reached the final, the next season was him.
Miller has been exceptional for GT like Shami. He’s their third-highest run-getter after Gill and Sudharsan, yet he’s been overlooked. One can easily claim that Miller’s the best finisher in the IPL. GT might also think that, but they would rather let him get to the mega auction instead of risking an investment of Rs 11 crore beforehand.
GT’s Current Squad
Shubman Gill (c), David Miller, Matthew Wade, Wriddhiman Saha, Kane Williamson, Abhinav Manohar, Sai Sudharsan, Darshan Nalkande, Vijay Shankar, Jayant Yadav, Rahul Tewatia, Noor Ahmad, Sai Kishore, Rashid Khan, Joshua Little, Mohit Sharma, Azmatullah Omarzai, Umesh Yadav, Shahrukh Khan, Sushant Mishra, Kartik Tyagi, Manav Suthar, Spencer Johnson, Mohammed Shami, Robin Minz.
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