IPL retention: Kolkata Knight Riders Full Squad

Two-time Indian Premier League champions Kolkata Knight Riders have made some bold decisions and kept the players ahead of the IPL 2022 mega auction. KKR fired its skipper Eoin Morgan and senior professionals like Dinesh Karthik, Shakib Al Hasan and Pat Cummins to keep Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Varun Chakravarthy and Venkatesh Iyer. Under Morgan's leadership, KKR played aggressive cricket in the second half of the 2021 IPL and advanced to the finals, where they suffered a loss to the Chennai Super Kings. However, Morgan's performance with the racket has always been under scanners throughout the season. The southpaw scored only 133 runs and turned out to be a strain on the team in the loft department.

KKR decided to take some tough calls to avoid mistakes made in recent seasons and to keep some valuable players known as T20 specialists. Sunil Narine was the veteran franchisee and emerged as an MVP on multiple occasions. Russell, on the other hand, is one of the most explosive bats in world cricket and also makes a valuable contribution with the bat. Chakravarthy has proven to be KKR's trump card with the ball over the past few seasons. Meanwhile, Venkatesh took the limelight with his batting performances in the second half of the 2021 IPL.

Read More | IPL 2022: 3 Reasons Why Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) Shouldn't Keep Eoin Morgan Before Mega Auction

Sources who are aware of developments in the BCCI SGM said that the national associations have been informed that discussions will be held with all foreign boards and a decision will be made on whether or not foreign players will be available there will be a need for substitutes.