Hardik Pandya and Shreyas Iyer unlikely to be retained by MI and DC for IPL 2022: Report

Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya is unlikely to be retained by his IPL franchise Mumbai Indians. According to PTI, Hardik may be released by Mumbai Indians ahead of the 2022 mega auction, which will allow other teams to bid for him for the upcoming season. This comes days after the tournament returned to being a 10-team affair with the addition of two new franchises - Lucknow and Ahmedabad. A source monitoring the retention market of franchises told PTI that if one RTM (Right to Match) and three retentions are allowed per team, Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, and Kieron Pollard are most likely to be given the priority. 

"I think BCCI will have three-player retention formula with one Right to Match card. If RTM is not there, there could be four retentions. Rohit Sharma and India's pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrsh are automatic picks. Kieron Pollard will be the third retention. MI's strength is its continuity as these three are pillars of MI. At this point in time, there is less than 10 percent chance that Hardik will be retained by MI. Yes, he might just outperform everybody in the next few T20 World Cup games but even then, chances are dim. If there are four retentions or 1 RTM, then Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan are the contenders for that slot, the source was quoted as saying by PTI. 

Shreyas Iyer to leave Delhi Capitals?

Meanwhile, Indian batter Shreyas Iyer is unlikely to be part of the Delhi Capitals set up next year as he will be keen on taking up a leadership role given his success in the previous editions of the tournament. Iyer, who led Delhi Capitals to two consecutive playoffs, was replaced as captain of the side earlier this year after he suffered an injury on his shoulder. Rishabh Pant was appointed the captain of the side and he remained at the position even after Iyer's return in the second phase. Pant also led Delhi to the playoffs and will most likely retain the captaincy role next season. 

With two new franchises in the mix now, Iyer would like to make himself available for the captaincy role and would most likely ask Delhi to release him ahead of the mega auction. According to the report, the BCCI will give the new franchises option to choose three players from the pool before heading into the auction. If implemented, the move will level the playing field for all franchises ahead of the mega auction. 

Image: PTI/AP