Former India cricketer Irfan Pathan has expressed surprise over the release of star all-rounder Andre Russell ahead of the IPL 2026 auction. The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) decided to let go of the veteran player despite having retained him for ₹12 crore for the 2025 season.

While Russell couldn’t perform up to expectations last year, Irfan Pathan believes his release was an unexpected move. He emphasized that Russell has been a match-winner for the franchise over the years and deserved backing.

“There were many big names released who were shocking for me. The biggest was Andre Russell. Him not being in KKR came as a massive surprise. He has been a match-winner. There were injury concerns and the form was not there last year but he has won you so many games over the years. If you feel he cannot be available for 14 games then it is a different thing but I feel he could definitely have been backed. KKR have backed him for many years but here they haven’t. It will be little difficult to find a player of his skill,” Pathan said on his YouTube channel.

In 133 IPL games for KKR, Russell scored 2,593 runs at a strike rate of 174.97, along with 122 wickets. During their title-winning campaign in 2024, he contributed 222 runs and picked up 19 wickets.

### Other Surprising Releases

Another notable release came from five-time champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the form of pacer Matheesha Pathirana. Although Pathirana had a somewhat disappointing season last year with 13 wickets at an economy rate of 10.13, he has been a consistent performer for CSK.

“Matheesha Pathirana brings that skill which is difficult to find, bowling yorkers with that slingy action. If they are thinking to buy him back for cheaper, I don’t understand it. It only makes sense if they are looking at someone else and have moved past him,” Pathan added.

When CSK clinched the trophy in 2023, Pathirana played a key role, taking 19 wickets from 12 matches.

### LSG’s Release of David Miller

In the same discussion, Irfan Pathan also commented on Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) releasing star South African batter David Miller. Miller had an underwhelming season, scoring just 153 runs from 11 matches at a strike rate of 127.50.

Pathan highlighted that LSG’s lower middle order lacks experience and felt the team would miss Miller’s finishing ability.

“David Miller brings that finishing skill as a left-hander. This is a bit surprising for me as there is some inexperience in the middle lower order for LSG. They have great players at the top but in the lower order you need experience. David Miller not being there is a big miss,” he said.

### Mumbai Indians’ Strategy with Young Players

Talking about other releases, Irfan Pathan felt that five-time champions Mumbai Indians (MI) could have persisted with young talent Vignesh Puthur. However, he also believes MI will once again pick an uncapped player at the auction.

“MI have not released anyone who was a part of the 11. Vignesh Puthur was backed and given some chances as well, like they always give the platform to young players. They could have persisted with him. Even with a low purse, they will pick some uncapped player in the auction and will surprise everyone.”

MI released players including Arjun Tendulkar (traded out), Bevon Jacobs, Karn Sharma, Lizaad Williams, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Reece Topley, Krishnan Shrijith, Satyanarayana Raju, and Vignesh Puthur ahead of the auction.

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