New Delhi: Rajasthan Royals have finalised their retention and will submit the players list to BCCI on Thursday, October 31. According to ESPNcricinfo, the franchise has decided to retain Sanju Samson, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Riyan Parag and Sandeep Sharma.
After retaining four players, RR will have two right-to-match (RTM) cards in case they want to buy a couple of their players back into their squad. Fast bowler Sandeep Sharma will be retained under the uncapped player rule, which will cost the franchise only INR 4 crore. The league’s Governing Council brought back the uncapped player rule after scraping it in 2021.
According to the rule, any Indian cricketer who hasn’t played an international match in the last five years and is also not contracted with BCCI can be termed as an uncapped player. Sandeep played only two T20I matches for India back in 2015. While the specific amount for each player isn’t known yet, the franchise will lose at least INR 47 crore from their overall purse of INR 120 crore after retaining four players.
ESPNcricinfo also reported that the franchise is still deciding whether to retain Dhruv Jurel. If RR decides to retain him, he will be the fourth capped player on their retention list, which will deduct another 18 crore from their purse.
Sanju Samson joined Rajasthan Royals in 2013 and is a crucial part of the team. He played for Delhi Daredevils in two seasons when the RR franchise didn’t feature in the tournament. Jaiswal and Parag are also an important part of this team and played all their IPL matches for Rajasthan Royals.
No Jos Buttler and Yuzvendra Chahal on retaining list
England batter Jos Buttler and spinner Yuzvendra Chahal were the orange and purple cap winners when the franchise made it to the final of IPL 2022. Buttler scored 359 runs at a strike rate of 141 in 2024 but has been sidelined by injury since England’s T20 World Cup exit. Yuzvendra Chahal, the highest wicket-taker in IPL was signed by the Royals in 2022 for INR 6.5 crore. He picked up 18 wickets last season at an economy rate of 9.41.
