Overview
- Kolkata Knight Riders confirmed Andre Russell’s release alongside Venkatesh Iyer, Quinton de Kock, Moeen Ali, Anrich Nortje and Rahmanullah Gurbaz, creating a ₹64.30 crore purse with 13 slots to fill, including six overseas.
- Former India batter Mohammad Kaif publicly criticized the move and attributed it to new head coach Abhishek Nayar’s overhaul, characterizing the call as an attempt to build his own squad.
- Ravichandran Ashwin and Aakash Chopra predicted KKR would pursue Australian all-rounder Cameron Green, stressing this as auction speculation rather than a confirmed plan.
- Analyses project Russell as a top draw at the IPL 2026 mini-auction in Abu Dhabi on December 16, with multiple teams expected to consider bids for the long-time KKR star.
- Reports alleging CSK–KKR backchannel talks linking Matheesha Pathirana’s release to a Russell approach remain single-source and unverified.