IPL 2022 Retention: Disappointed fans urge CSK to re-sign veteran star Suresh Raina

The existing eight teams in the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Tuesday announced the names of the retained players ahead of the upcoming mega auction. Amongst those who have been released by their respective franchises is Chennai Super Kings star Suresh Raina.

With franchises allowed to retain only four players ahead of the IPL mega auction, CSK decided to go with Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni, Moeen Ali, and Ruturaj Gaikwad. Raina has failed to find a spot in the list of retained players, which has triggered angry fans on social media, who are criticising the Chennai-based side for its choice of retention. 

Netizens took to social media to slam CSK for not retaining Raina ahead of IPL 2022. Several people highlighted Raina's contribution to the team over the past several years, including his illustrious statistics with the bat. Raina is one of the few players in the IPL who has had the privilege of playing more than 200 games. Raina is amongst the top run-scorers in the tournament's history, having scored 5,528 runs at an average of 32.5. Here's how netizens reacted to Raina's omission from Chennai Super Kings' IPL 2022 retention list.

Raina's tryst with CSK

Raina joined CSK in 2008 during the inaugural season of the cash-rich league. Raina was instrumental in CSK's title-winning streak between 2010 and 2014, during which time the MS Dhoni-led side won two IPL titles and as many Champions League T20 titles.

He played an important role with the bat in the final of IPL 2010, where he scored a match-winning half-century against Mumbai Indians. However, in the past couple of seasons, Raina has witnessed a dip in his batting form, resulting in him being dropped from the playing XI during the knockout stage of IPL 2021, which saw CSK lift its fourth title.

With Raina now out of the retention list, several teams will be eyeing to get their hands on the left-handed batter given his experience of playing in the high-octane league. Raina could be picked by his home-state team Lucknow - one of the two new franchises. Meanwhile, CSK could target Raina in the mega auction if he is not contracted by any of the teams before the marquee event as the side will be looking to bring back its second-most loved player after Dhoni.

Full list of players retained by eight original franchises before mega auctions

• Mumbai Indians (MI) - Rohit Sharma for INR 16 crores, Jasprit Bumrah for INR 12 crores, Suryakumar Yadav for INR 8 crores, Kieron Pollard for INR 6 crore
• Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) - Virat Kohli for INR 15 crores, Glenn Maxwell for INR 11 crores, Mohammed Siraj for INR 7 crores
• Punjab Kings (PBKS) - Mayank Agarwal for INR 12 crores, Arshdeep Singh for INR 4 crores
• Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) - Kane Williamson for INR 14 crores, Abdul Samad for INR 4 crores, Umran Malik for INR 4 crores
• Chennai Super Kings (CSK) - Ravindra Jadeja for INR 16 crores, MS Dhoni for INR 12 crores, Moeen Ali  for INR 8 crores, Ruturaj Gaikwad for INR 6 crores
• Delhi Capitals (DC) - Rishabh Pant for INR 16 crores, Axar Patel for INR 9 crores, Prithvi Shaw for INR 7.5 crores, Anrich Nortje for INR 6.5 crores
• Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) - Andre Russell for INR 12 crores, Varun Chakravarthy for INR 8 crores, Venkatesh Iyer for INR 8 crores, Sunil Narine for INR 6 crores
• Rajasthan Royals (RR) - Sanju Samson for INR 14 crores, Jos Buttler for INR 10 crores, Yashasvi Jaiswal for INR 4 crores

Image: PTI