The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 retention deadline is not far away, and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are probably facing some major changes in their lineup. The Delightful Knights might drop off some star players from kkR Retention List and instead keep their names in KKR Released Players 2026 list. Certain players could very well be released due to their hefty price tag; however, on the other hand, some players did not get sufficient chances to showcase their talents.
Let’s discuss a bit of the Indian talent that would rather find themselves on the KKR released list than on KKR retained list for the next season.
Indian Players likely To Be Released By KKR ahead of IPL 2026 Auction
Venkatesh Iyer
Venkatesh Iyer can be among the first names that the Indian Premier League auction winner Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will release before the IPL 2026 auction. After having been given the trust and bought back for INR 23.75 crore in the IPL 2025 auction, he was unable to deliver as predicted. He played 11 matches, batted in seven innings, and scored only 142 runs with an average of 20.28. His batting order also was not stable, but still, he did not leave any major impact on the team.
Taking into account his fat paycheck, he might easily make it to KKr released players 2026 to make a chunk of their cash available to them. This would be an intensive targeting of new players in the auction and a session of changes in the team to make for a batter season next year.
Manish Pandey
Manish Pandey was re-acquired by KKR for INR 75 lakh after being released ahead of the IPL 2025 auction. The previous season he was given very limited opportunities and he only managed to play three matches from where he could collect 92 runs. In IPL 2024 he managed to play only one match before being let go after the season.
The situation might occur again that the team does not want to hold his name in KKR’s retention list before IPL 2026 auction. Even though his cost is not that high, letting go of him would be reasonable since he has had only four games in the last two years.
Anukul Roy
In the same manner as Manish Pandey, Anukul Roy was also picked by KKR for INR 40 lakhs after being cut loose prior to the season. The only match he played for the team in IPL 2025 was Anukul’s one single match. Anukul has been with KKR since 2022 and has played only 11 matches in four seasons, which is a very small number for a player who is mainly considered as a backup.
Considering his little game time, KKR may again think of releasing Anukul Roy before the IPL 2026 auction. Keeping him in the KKR Released players 2026 list would mean a new player slot would be opened in the next auction.
Mayank Markande
Mayank Markande was won over by KKR for INR 30 lakh at the IPL 2025 auction after being let go by SRH before the season. Regardless, he was not given the opportunity to play in any matches for KKR as the team already had Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy controlling the spin department.
Since Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy will most likely be the first choice bowlers next season, it might take another season for Mayank Markande to get his chance to play. He will be on the KKR released players 2026 list and in the IPL 2026 auction KKR may target a more experienced spinner.
Chetan Sakariya
Chetan Sakariya was appointed as Umran Malik’s replacement due to his injury just before the IPL 2025 season start but was given the opportunity to play only one match throughout the tournament. He was also in KKR’s team for IPL 2024 but didn’t play in any match and was let go after the season.
After his IPL debut in 2021, Chetan Sakariya has only played 20 matches and has not made any notable impact. KKR may cut him loose before IPL 2026.
