IPL 2022: 3 surprising retentions ahead of the mega auction

The Indian Premier League retentions for the 2022 edition on Tuesday, November 30, threw up plenty of surprises. The upcoming edition is set to feature 10 teams, and barring two new teams – Ahmedabad and Lucknow – the other eight franchises put forth their list of retained and released players.

After being released, the 2021 edition might just be the last season for a number of players. In the retentions, while some picks were pretty much expected, a few selections took the netizens and experts by surprise.

Prior to the retention, a few players were almost certain to get retained after how they performed in the previous editions of the cash-rich league. Instead of them, the franchises went for players, who either didn’t perform at all, or weren’t as good as they were expected to be.

In the article, let’s take a look at 3 surprising retentions ahead of the mega auction

Mohammed Siraj

Back in 2018, RCB roped in Mohammed Siraj for INR 2.60 crores and he has played four seasons for them. But it was only from 2020 that he started making a mark in the IPL. In 2021, he picked up only 11 wickets from 15 games, but his economy rate of 6.78 was amongst the best in his team. But the fact that the Challengers had another option in Yuzvendra Chahal, Siraj’s retention raised eyebrows.

Moeen Ali

Moeen Ali played a key role in CSK winning their fourth IPL title in 2021. Apart from scoring 357 runs, he also picked up six wickets at an economy rate of 6.35. However, more than Moeen, it was Faf du Plessis, who was expected to be retained. Du Plessis was the second-highest run-scorer of the IPL 2021 as Ruturaj Gaikwad edged him out by a mere two runs in the race for the Orange Cap.

Umran Malik

SRH drafted Umran Malik after pacer T Natarajan was ruled out after being tested positive for COVID-19. Before IPL 2021, Malik had a negligible experience of playing top-level cricket. However, he grabbed the limelight in the T20 league with his sheer pace. Although he got two wickets from three games at an economy rate of eight, the fact that he got retained raised plenty of eyebrows.