3 players Kolkata might release ahead of Indian T20 League 2023

The Kolkata franchise has been one of the most successful teams in the history of the tournament. The Men in Purple have two ITL titles to their name and have played in the three finals across the seasons. In fact, they were the runners-up of the Indian T20 League 2021. In the 15^th edition of the tournament, Kolkata had a great start but lost their way in the middle of the tournament with five defeats on the trot. After their losing streak, they tried to get their campaign back on track but failed to catch up and thus bowed out of the tournament before the playoffs.

Moving ahead into the next season of the tournament they will look to make a few changes and try and find a better team combination. Here is a list of three players the team might look to release ahead of the 16^th edition of ITL.

3. Pat Cummins: Pat Cummins played a stunning knock against Mumbai to win the match for Kolkata. But he failed miserably in the season with his main trade, i.e., bowling. In the five matches that Cummins played for his team in the tournament, he just picked up 7 wickets.  He conceded runs at the rate of 10.69 runs per over and failed to deliver for the team in the crunch situations. Kolkata might look to replace him with a better death-bowling option.

2. Sheldon Jackson: Sheldon Jackson has been in the discussion because of his wicket-keeping exploits in the tournament. But in front of the stumps, Jackson has a terrible time. He was able to score only 23 runs in 5 matches at an average of 5.85 and a strike rate of 88.46. After a disappointing performance with the bat, Kolkata might look to release the wicket-keeper batter as he appears to be a one-dimensional player. The Men in Purple might look to replace him with a dynamic middle-order batter.

1. Ajinkya Rahane: Kolkata roped in Ajinkya Rahane for INR 1.0 Cr with the hope that he will provide them with some solid starts. But Rahane neither justified his price tag nor repaid the faith the team showed in him. He played seven matches in the tournament and scored just 133 runs in them at an average of 19.00 and a strike rate of 103.91. His performance in the tournament was nowhere near the expectations of him. So, Kolkata might look to release him and replace him with a more dynamic batter for the top order.