The release of the Indian Premier League (IPL) retention rules may be delayed further, according to speculation circulating among IPL franchise owners and officials. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is expected to postpone the announcement until the end of the month. There is also a possibility that the retention policy could be revealed around the time of the BCCI’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Bengaluru on September 29.
While the AGM and IPL policies are not directly connected, there is a chance the BCCI might announce the rules sooner. However, most IPL officials believe the announcement will take another 10 days to two weeks. Although there has been no official statement regarding this, the BCCI is said to have hinted at a delay to franchise officials who recently inquired about the retention rules.
Initially, the BCCI had planned to announce the policy by the end of August, as communicated during last month's owners' meeting in Mumbai. As the deadline neared, franchise officials reportedly contacted the BCCI and were informed of the potential delay, with an understanding that the policy will now be revealed by the end of September.
Regardless of when the retention rules are announced, it is believed that franchises will have until November 15 to finalize their retention decisions. The player auction, expected to take place in December, is likely to feature the Right to Match (RTM) options as well.
One of the most debated issues under consideration by the BCCI is the possibility of classifying retired international players as uncapped. This move, while potentially controversial, may not significantly impact the auction purse. There is speculation that this rule is not specifically designed to place MS Dhoni in the 'uncapped' category to benefit Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Rather, it is considered to be in the league’s overall interest if Dhoni continues to play for another season.
CSK officials have also emphasized that if Dhoni decides to play next season, he would be one of their retained players, even if the BCCI limits franchises to only two retentions. This rule could also impact players like Sunil Narine, who retired from international cricket, with his last T20I appearance in 2019.
The general sentiment is that classifying retired players as uncapped may not drastically affect the auction dynamics. The BCCI plans to deduct a portion of the auction purse based on the number of retained players, allowing franchises to manage their player prices without having to assign a specific value to each retained player, as is the current practice.
