Ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 mini auction, all 10 franchise have announced their retention list ahead of the November 15 deadline. Some of the franchises have released big names of the cash-rich league to free up their auction purse, and one of the notable names among released players is Venkatesh Iyer, who was purchased by the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for a whopping 23.05 Crores.
Notably, the released players will go under the hammer in the auction, which will take place in December. Here are some of the notable releases.
Andre Russell (West Indies)
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have released one of their prominent stars, Andre Russell, who has been a part of the franchise since the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2014. He represented the franchise in 133 matches, where he amassed 2592 runs and picked up 122 wickets. The West Indies star has a forgetful outing in the last edition of the tournament as he scored 167 runs in 13 matches and picked up eight wickets.
Matheesha Pathirana (Sri Lanka)
Matheesha Pathirana who started his IPL career with Chennai Super Kings in 2022, has also been released by the franchise. He represented the side in 32 matches and picked up 47 wickets. CSK had a forgetful outing in the last edition of the tournament as they ended last in the points table and the speedster also managed to pick 13 wickets in 12 outings.
Venkatesh Iyer (India)
Venkatesh Iyer has been a part of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) since making his IPL debut. He made headlines in the last edition of the tournament when the Kolkata-based franchise spent 23.05 Crores in the mega auction to get his services. However, the batter had a forgetful outing in the last edition of the tournament, where he managed to score 142 runs in 11 outings.
Liam Livingstone (England)
Liam Livingstone was part of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, where he had an underwhelming 2025 season with the bat, scoring 112 runs in eight innings at a strike rate of 133.33. The franchise spent Rs. 8.75 crore at the 2025 auction to get his services.
Glenn Maxwell (Australia)
Glenn Maxwell, who was part of the finalists Punjab Kings played seven games in IPL 2025 before sustaining a fractured finger midway through the season. He scored only 48 runs in six innings, including single-digit scores in each of his last four games, with a best of 30 and picked up four wickets
Devon Conway (New Zealand)
Devon Conway, who was part of the five-time champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the last edition of the tournament, managed to score 156 runs in six innings with an average of 26 and a strike rate of 131.09. The franchise also finished last in the mega event.
David Miller (South Africa)
Lucknow Super Giants have released David Miller before the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 auction after having a disappointing year, where he managed to score 153 runs in 11 matches at a low average of 30.60 without any half-centuries.
Ravi Bishnoi (India)
Lucknow Super Giants have released Ravi Bishnoi after he had a challenging season where he managed to get nine wickets in 11 outings with an economy rate of 10.84. He will be among the stars who will go under the hammer for the mini auction for IPL 2026.
Mujeeb ur Rahman (Afghanistan)
Mujeeb ur Rahman, who was added in the Mumbai Indians during the midseason of the Indian Premier League (IPL) as a replacement player, has been released from the squad. He played one IPL match in the last edition of the tournament.
Quinton de Kock (South Africa)
Kolkata Knight Riders have released top-order batter Quinton de Kock before the mini auction. He had a mixed IPL season where he amassed 152 runs in eight outings of the tournament.
Anrich Nortje (South Africa)
Anrich Nortje managed to feature in two matches for the Kolkata Knight Riders before getting ruled out of the tournament due to injuries.
Wanindu Hasaranga (Sri Lanka)
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) released Sri Lankan star Wanindu Hasaranga before the mini auction. He managed to pick 11 wickets in 11 outings with an economy of 9.05.
Rahul Chahar (India)
Sunrisers Hyderabad released Rahul Chahar before the mini auction of the Indian Premier League, where he played just one match
Rachin Ravindra (New Zealand)
Chennai Super Kings has released New Zealand star Rachin Ravindra after a forgettable outing in the last edition of the tournament, where he managed to score 191 runs in 8 outings.
Adam Zampa (Australia)
Adam Zampa's IPL 2025 performance was cut short after he played only two matches for the Sunrisers Hyderabad before being ruled out due to a shoulder injury. In those two games, he took two wickets, had a best bowling figure of 1/46, and an economy rate of 11.75. The Australian star will also go under the hammer in the upcoming auction.
Josh Inglis (Australia)
Josh Inglis had a strong IPL 2025 season for the Punjab Kings, scoring 278 runs in 11 games at an impressive strike rate of 162.57, with a highest score of 73. He was a key player in the middle order, particularly in the second half of the season, which led to him being retained by the team for the 2026 season. However, he has been released from the franchise because he won't be available for the next edition of the tournament.