Andre Russell recently sprang a big surprise by announcing his retirement from the Indian Premier League (IPL). The hard-hitting all-rounder was released by Kolkata Knight Riders ahead of the upcoming IPL auction and was set to be one of the biggest names at the auction.
However, West Indies decided to surprise the fans by announcing his retirement from the IPL. This decision ended a very successful association between the player and the franchise. Andre Russell made his IPL debut for Delhi Capitals in 2012 before joining Kolkata Knight Riders in 2014.
He was with the franchise even before he was released last month. Andre Russell was part of the team’s title-winning teams in 2014 and 2024. One of the best T20 all-rounders in the world over the past decade, Russell was also the IPL Most Valuable Player in 2019.
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Andre Russell on his retirement:
While Andre Russell was not at his best in the recent IPL season, not many were expecting him to retire. And the West Indies star has now revealed the reason behind his decision. In a recent interview, Russell said he wanted to bow out at a high point of the game rather than wait for his decline to become apparent.
“When I made this decision, I felt it was the best decision for me at this point. I don’t want to fade away, I want to leave a legacy behind. I believe it’s best to retire when people still ask “why,” rather than getting to the point where they say, “Well, yes, you should have retired three or four years ago,” Andre Russell said.
Although Russell has retired from the IPL, his association with Kolkata Knight Riders will continue. The franchise has announced Russell as its ‘power coach’ ahead of IPL 2026. He will be part of the new-look support staff, which will be led by new head coach Abhishek Nair. Tim South will be the bowling coach while Shane Watson and Dwayne Bravo will be the assistant coach and mentor respectively.
Andre Russell’s IPL career in statistics:
Andre Russell exited the IPL as one of the most celebrated players of the league. He is one of only two players in the history of IPL to score more than 2000 runs and take 100 wickets. Overall, he played 133 matches for Kolkata Knight Riders and scored 2593 runs including 12 fifties and maintained a strike-rate of around 175. With the ball, Russell took 122 wickets.
