Former Kolkata Knight Riders cricketer Aaron Finch has sparked debate over KKR veteran Andre Russell who, in his opinion, should be released before the mini-auction as he could be involved in a good trade deal.
Andre Russell joined the KKR camp in 2014 and was a part of KKR’s second title win under captain Gautam Gambhir. Russell played a key role in KKR’s winning run in 2024. With two IPL trophies and two MVP awards for KKR, he is their best cricketer on the show.
However, greater Jamaica’s performance in 2025 was modest. He scored only 167 runs with the bat and took only 8 wickets in his entire 14-match tenure. Furthermore, Russell could not lead KKR to a win against PBKS when they were chasing just 112 runs at New Chandigarh.
Former KKR star believes that KKR can get huge trade from Andre Russell
Speaking to Star Sports, former Australian captain Aaron Finch, who once played for KKR in the IPL, said that Andre Russell should be released by the Knight Riders as it could get them a good trade and increase their purse ahead of the mini-auction.
Finch said, “Controversial. Fold. But I think you could get a great trade. But we know they’re not going to do that. They’ll never release Dre Russ.”
However, Finch contradicted himself, saying that the Knight Riders will not part ways with Andre Russell until he retires from the IPL. He also said that the Knights should drop Quinton de Kock and Venkatesh Iyer from the team while retaining Spencer Johnson.
Will KKR break ties with Quinton de Kock despite his international comeback?
Finch’s views may be proved wrong as Spencer Johnson, who is nowhere in the limelight in international or domestic cricket, is likely to be a retention option. However, Quinton de Kock, who did not have the best of performances in the IPL last season, has made a comeback to international cricket for South Africa.
Anyway, De Kock surprised everyone by his sudden and early retirement despite his excellent form. Crucially, his lack of international appearances led to a sharp decline in his form and so he has probably reversed his decision.
On his international return, Quinton de Kock has managed to emerge as South Africa’s highest scorer and player of the series in Pakistan ODIs despite the series loss. He also scored a century on his return to white ball cricket.
KKR may walk away from Venkatesh Iyer’s huge price tag
Not sure on QDK, KKR should definitely let go of their vice-captain and batting all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer. Iyer, bought at a whopping price of Rs 23.75 crore, could score only 148 runs in the season with one half-century and an average of around 20.
After such a modest effort, Iyer is definitely not worth his price tag and the Knight Riders should release him when they announce their retained players list. Some other names like Moeen Ali can also be a part of the list of released players.
Also read: Shubman Gill set to lose T20I opening spot as fears of ‘major changes’ ahead of 2026 World Cup
