Not Deepak Chahar or Trent Boult; Aakash Chopra Reckons Mumbai Indians Could Release Reece Topley Ahead of IPL 2026

IPL 2026: Mumbai Indians had a decent season at IPL 2025. They made the playoffs, but could not go all the way and that is something they would want in IPL 2026. So, will they make changes to their set-up? Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra reckons the MI side may release England's Reece Topley. Claiming that Ashwani Kumar did a good job, Chopra believes the only player who could be released is the English star. 

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‘Topley will have to be released’

"There will be a question for sure whether the squad can be made better. I feel a little more work can be done on fast bowling. They have Deepak Chahar, Trent Boult and Jasprit Bumrah. Ashwani Kumar did a good job, but they didn't have a fifth pacer. Reece Topley will have to be released. You will keep Corbin Bosch," he said on his YouTube channel. 

For the unversed, Topley was signed by MI in the 2025 mega auction for Rs 75 lakhs. In Qualifier 2 of IPL 2025, Topley replaced Richard Gleeson in MI's playing XI due to a niggle. He picked up five wickets in his IPL career and has been expensive, conceding runs at 10.70 per over. Topley has excelled in T20s, picking up 230 wickets. 

Can Allah Ghazanfar Change The Fortunes of MI?

Chopra also believes Allah Ghazanfar could solve all MI's issues next year. The 19-year-old Afghan is highly-rated in the circuit and touted as a future star. For the unversed, MI with five IPL titles are one of the most successful franchises in the history of the cash-rich league. 

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In 2025, MI started slow but then bounced back to sneak into the playoffs. But in the Eliminator, they were beaten by Gujarat Titans and were knocked out. It would now be interesting to see the players MI release ahead of the auction.