Joe Root opts out of IPL 2024 a day before retention deadline،
England slugger Joe Root, who made his IPL debut for Rajasthan Royals earlier this year, has pulled out of IPL 2024 just a day before the retention deadline. The Royals said in a statement on their website that they “respect” Root’s decision.
“During our retention conversations, Joe informed us of his decision not to participate in IPL 2024,” said Kumar Sangakkara, Royals’ director of cricket. “Even in a short time, Joe was able to create such a positive impact on the franchise and the players around him. We will miss his energy within the group and the experience he brought to the Royals. We fully respect his decision and I wish him success in everything he does.”
Rob Key, England’s chief executive of men’s cricket, had said after announcing the squad for the Caribbean tour that Root “needs a break” at the end of the World Cup.
“He hasn’t been stopped since probably New Zealand or what he did in Pakistan, the ILT20, New Zealand, the Hundred, Ashes and so on,” Key had said.
In the IPL 2023 auction, Root was acquired by Royals for his base price of INR 1 crore (US$121,000 approx at the time). He played three matches for them but only batted in one, scoring 10 against Royal Challengers Bangalore in Jaipur. Even though opportunities were limited, Root tried to be a “sponge” in India to “soak up a lot of different information” and adapt to the T20 format.
He also enjoyed the company of youngsters like IPL 2023 big-hitter Yashasvi Jaiswal and Riyan Parag.
“The addition of the 32-year-old to the Royals squad brought a lot of depth and experience, which served as a learning experience for many youngsters in the team like Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag and Yashasvi Jaiswal in the team,” the franchise said. said in the release. “His camaraderie with England teammate Jos Buttler and bonding with Yuzvendra Chahal was also one of the memorable highlights of the former England Test skipper’s stint with the Royals.”
Root becomes the second England player after his Test captain Ben Stokes to opt out of the upcoming IPL season. November 26 is the deadline for franchises to announce their releases and retentions ahead of the December 19 auction.
The Royals have already been active in the trade window, bringing in Indian fast bowler Avesh Khan from the Lucknow Super Giants, while also handing over Devdutt Padikkal to the Super Giants.
Shahbaz was traded to Sunrisers, Dagar to RCB
Indian all-rounder Shahbaz Ahmed will represent Sunrisers Hyderabad next season after his franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore traded him for bowling all-rounder Mayank Dagar. The IPL has confirmed that the swap is a direct exchange between the two teams.
Dagar, who plays domestic cricket for Himachal Pradesh, played three matches for the Sunrisers in his maiden IPL season after being bought for INR 1.8 crore ($219,000 approx) in the 2023 auction .Shahbaz was obtained for INR 2.4 crore ($320,000 approx) ahead of IPL 2022.
Sunrisers and RCB have new leaders for the upcoming season. While Sunrisers have Daniel Vettori as their new head coach, RCB have appointed Andy Flower to the same role.
