5 retained players who faltered in IPL 2025
What's the story
The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season has finally come to an end with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) lifting the title for the very first time.
While some new players have made a mark this season, many prominent names failed to live up to the expectations.
Several players retained at exorbitant prices ahead of the mega auction struggled throughout the season.
Here are five retained players who couldn't match their price tags in IPL 2025.
#1
Rashid Khan - Gujarat Titans
The Gujarat Titans invested heavily in Rashid Khan, retaining him for ₹18 crore.
However, the Afghan star had a disappointing season, picking up just nine wickets in 15 matches at a high bowling average of 57.11 (ER: 9.34).
This was Rashid's worst IPL campaign in terms of wickets, average, and economy rate.
Notably, the leg-spinner is widely hailed as one of the best bowlers in T20 history.
#2
Nitish Kumar Reddy - Sunrisers Hyderabad
Sunrisers Hyderabad retained young all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy for ₹6 crore but he failed to deliver the desired results.
He managed only 182 runs from 13 matches at an average of 22.7 and a strike rate of 118.95, and his underwhelming performance impacted SRH's campaign this season.
Notably, Reddy could not even touch the 35-run mark even once. His bowling abilities were underutilized largely due to the 'Impact Player' rule.
#3
Andre Russell - Kolkata Knight Riders
Kolkata Knight Riders's all-rounder Andre Russell, retained for ₹12 crore, also disappointed with just 167 runs in 10 innings at 18.55.
His failure in the finisher's role largely dented KKR's campaign as they failed to qualify for playoffs. Though Russell managed eight wickets with the ball, his economy of 11.94 did not help the team much.
It will be interesting to see whether KKR continue to stick with him.
#4
Ravi Bishnoi - Lucknow Super Giants
Leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi, who was retained by Lucknow Super Giants retained for a whopping ₹11 crore, also had a disappointing run.
He could manage just nine wickets from 11 matches this season as his economy (10.83) is on the higher side.
Bishnoi was even dropped from the XI for the last few games as the uncapped Digvesh Rathi enjoyed a way better campaign.
#5
Ramandeep Singh - Kolkata Knight Riders
Expectations were high from KKR's Ramandeep Singh as he was retained for ₹4 crore.
However, he could not even manage a single decent score, finishing with just 47 runs from 11 games at 9.40.
His best score in the season was just 22 as the all-rounder was even dropped from the XI.
Moreover, he did not roll his arm over even once.