The official IPL 2026 Retention Players list is now out, and it has completely reshaped the pre-auction landscape. All ten franchises have locked in their core squads, finalised high-profile trades, and released several major names ahead of the IPL 2026 mini auction.
With more than 170 retained players and dozens of surprising releases, the retention window has created new narratives, fan excitement, and massive speculation about how teams will rebuild on auction day.
Complete IPL 2026 Retention Players List (Team-by-Team)
Chennai Super Kings (CSK)
Retained Players
Ruturaj Gaikwad
Dewald Brevis*
Ayush Mhatre
Urvil Patel
Anshul Kamboj
Jamie Overton*
Ramakrishna Ghosh
Shivam Dube
Khaleel Ahmed
Noor Ahmad*
Mukesh Choudhary
Nathan Ellis*
Shreyas Gopal
Gurjapneet Singh
Sanju Samson (Trade-in from RR)
Released Players
Ravindra Jadeja (Trade-out to RR)
Sam Curran* (Trade-out to RR)
Rahul Tripathi
Vansh Bedi
Andre Siddarth
Rachin Ravindra*
Deepak Hooda
Vijay Shankar
Shaik Rasheed
Kamlesh Nagarkoti
Matheesha Pathirana*
Devon Conway*
Ravichandran Ashwin (Retired)
Delhi Capitals (DC)
Retained Players
KL Rahul
Karun Nair
Abishek Porel
Tristan Stubbs*
Axar Patel
Sameer Rizvi
Ashutosh Sharma
Vipraj Nigam
Ajay Mandal
Tripurana Vijay
Madhav Tiwari
Mitchell Starc*
T. Natarajan
Mukesh Kumar
Dushmantha Chameera*
Kuldeep Yadav
Nitish Rana (Trade-in from RR)
Released Players
Donovan Ferreira* (Trade-out to RR)
Faf du Plessis*
Jake Fraser-McGurk*
Sediqullah Atal*
Manvanth Kumar
Mohit Sharma
Darshan Nalkande
Gujarat Titans (GT)
Retained Players
Shubman Gill
Sai Sudharsan
Kumar Kushagra
Anuj Rawat
Jos Buttler*
Nishant Sindhu
Glenn Phillips*
Washington Sundar
Arshad Khan
Shahrukh Khan
Rahul Tewatia
Kagiso Rabada*
Mohammed Siraj
Prasidh Krishna
Ishant Sharma
Gurnoor Singh Brar
Rashid Khan*
Manav Suthar
Sai Kishore
Jayant Yadav
Released Players
Sherfane Rutherford* (Trade-out to MI)
Mahipal Lomror
Karim Janat*
Dasun Shanaka*
Gerald Coetzee*
Kulwant Khejroliya
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)
Retained Players
Ajinkya Rahane
Rinku Singh
Angkrish Raghuvanshi
Manish Pandey
Rovman Powell*
Anukul Roy
Ramandeep Singh
Vaibhav Arora
Sunil Narine*
Varun Chakaravarthy
Harshit Rana
Umran Malik
Released Players
Mayank Markande (Trade-out to MI)
Andre Russell*
Venkatesh Iyer
Quinton de Kock*
Anrich Nortje*
Luvnith Sisodia
Rahmanullah Gurbaz*
Moeen Ali*
Chetan Sakariya
Spencer Johnson*
Lucknow Super Giants (LSG)
Retained Players
Rishabh Pant
Ayush Badoni
Abdul Samad
Aiden Markram*
Himmat Singh
Matthew Breetzke*
Nicholas Pooran*
Mitchell Marsh*
Shahbaz Ahamad
Arshin Kulkarni
Mayank Yadav
Avesh Khan
Mohsin Khan
M. Siddharth
Digvesh Rathi
Prince Yadav
Akash Singh
Arjun Tendulkar (Trade-in from MI)
Mohammed Shami (Trade-in from SRH)
Released Players
Shardul Thakur (Trade-out to MI)
David Miller*
Aryan Juyal
Yuvraj Chaudhary
Rajvardhan Hangargekar
Akash Deep
Ravi Bishnoi
Mumbai Indians (MI)
Retained Players
Rohit Sharma
Suryakumar Yadav
Robin Minz
Ryan Rickelton*
Tilak Varma
Hardik Pandya
Naman Dhir
Mitchell Santner*
Will Jacks*
Corbin Bosch*
Raj Bawa
Trent Boult*
Jasprit Bumrah
Deepak Chahar
Ashwani Kumar
Raghu Sharma
Allah Ghazanfar*
Mayank Markande (Trade-in from KKR)
Shardul Thakur (Trade-in from LSG)
Sherfane Rutherford* (Trade-in from GT)
Released Players
Arjun Tendulkar (Trade-out to LSG)
Satyanarayana Raju
Reece Topley*
KL Shrijith
Karn Sharma
Bevon Jacobs*
Mujeeb ur Rahman*
Lizaad Williams*
Vignesh Puthur
Punjab Kings (PBKS)
Retained Players
Shreyas Iyer
Nehal Wadhera
Vishnu Vinod
Harnoor Pannu
Pyla Avinash
Prabhsimran Singh
Shashank Singh
Marcus Stoinis*
Harpreet Brar
Marco Jansen*
Azmatullah Omarzai*
Priyansh Arya
Musheer Khan
Suryansh Shedge
Mitch Owen*
Arshdeep Singh
Yuzvendra Chahal
Vyshak Vijaykumar
Yash Thakur
Xavier Bartlett*
Lockie Ferguson*
Released Players
Josh Inglis*
Aaron Hardie*
Glenn Maxwell*
Kuldeep Sen
Praveen Dubey
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB)
Retained Players
Rajat Patidar
Virat Kohli
Tim David*
Devdutt Padikkal
Phil Salt*
Jitesh Sharma
Krunal Pandya
Jacob Bethell*
Romario Shepherd*
Swapnil Singh
Josh Hazlewood*
Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Rasikh Salam
Yash Dayal
Suyash Sharma
Nuwan Thushara*
Abhinandan Singh
Released Players
Mayank Agarwal
Swastik Chhikara
Tim Seifert*
Liam Livingstone*
Manoj Bhandage
Lungi Ngidi*
Mohit Rathee
Rajasthan Royals (RR)
Retained Players
Shubham Dubey
Vaibhav Suryavanshi
Lhuan-dre Pretorius*
Shimron Hetmyer*
Yashasvi Jaiswal
Dhruv Jurel
Riyan Parag
Yudhvir Singh Charak
Jofra Archer*
Tushar Deshpande
Fazalhaq Farooqi*
Kwena Maphaka*
Nandre Burger*
Ravindra Jadeja (Trade-in from CSK)
Sam Curran* (Trade-in from CSK)
Donovan Ferreira* (Trade-in from DC)
Released Players
Sanju Samson (Trade-out to CSK)
Nitish Rana (Trade-out to DC)
Kunal Singh Rathore
Maheesh Theekshana*
Wanindu Hasaranga*
Fazalhaq Farooqi*
Akash Madhwal
Kumar Kartikeya
Ashok Sharma
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH)
Retained Players
Travis Head*
Abhishek Sharma
Aniket Verma
R Smaran
Ishan Kishan
Heinrich Klaasen*
Nitish Kumar Reddy
Harsh Dubey
Kamindu Mendis*
Harshal Patel
Brydon Carse*
Pat Cummins*
Jaydev Unadkat
Eshan Malinga*
Zeeshan Ansari
Released Players
Mohammad Shami (Trade-out to LSG)
Abhinav Manohar
Atharva Taide
Sachin Baby
Wiaan Mulder*
Simarjeet Singh
Rahul Chahar
Adam Zampa*
Why the IPL 2026 Retention List Matters
Retention is where teams decide:
- Their core leadership and match-winners
- How much purse they carry into the auction
- Which stars they’re willing to let go
- Who they want to bring in through trades
The IPL 2026 retained players list also directly impacts team balance, squad depth, and fan sentiment ahead of the new season.
Biggest Stories of the 2026 Retention Window
1. CSK–RR Mega Trade
The biggest move:
Sanju Samson → CSK
Ravindra Jadeja → RR
Sam Curran → RR
This created massive shifts in leadership, middle-order strength, and team identity.
2. LSG’s Blockbuster Double Strengthening
LSG added:
Arjun Tendulkar (from MI)
Mohammed Shami (from SRH)
A huge boost to their fast-bowling department.
3. KKR Cleans House
KKR released Andre Russell, Venkatesh Iyer, and Quinton de Kock — signalling a complete overhaul ahead of auction.
4. RCB Commit to Youth + Experience
With Virat Kohli still the face of the franchise and Rajat Patidar supported by Phil Salt, Tim David, and Hazlewood, RCB have balanced their 2026 lineup smartly.
5. MI Reload With Trades
MI added:
Mayank Markande
Shardul Thakur
Sherfane Rutherford
Mini-Auction Outlook for IPL 2026
With such a strong pool of IPL 2026 released players, the auction will be extremely competitive.
Teams expected to spend big:
KKR (deep purse, minimal retentions)
SRH (looking for finishing options)
RCB (need more spin & Indian middle-order stability)
Major stars in the auction pool include:
Andre Russell
Liam Livingstone
Wanindu Hasaranga
Maheesh Theekshana
Ravi Bishnoi
David Miller
The IPL 2026 Retention Players announcement is more than a list — it’s the blueprint for the entire season. Trades, surprises, superstar exits, and bold retentions have all set the stage for one of the most intense mini-auctions ever.
Franchises have shown clarity:
- CSK & MI = Stability
- RR & KKR = Rebuild
- GT & SRH = Power core
- RCB & LSG = Fresh intent
- DC & PBKS = Balance and depth
With squads shifting and new roles emerging, the IPL 2026 season already feels bigger, bolder, and more unpredictable than ever.
Because entertainment never stops! CelebsAdda brings you fast, reliable, and spicy updates from the world of cinema, television, and celebrity culture anytime, anywhere.