IPL 2023: Punjab Kings part with Mayank Agarwal, Odean Smith, retain strong batting line-up

Agarwal, who was the mainstay of the side's top-order from 2019-21 and scored well, could only score 196 runs in 12 innings at an average of 16.33 and a strike rate of 122.50 since he was appointed the captain in 2022.

Punjab Kings have released their former skipper Mayank Agarwal, West Indies bowling all-rounder Odean Smith and some other players for the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023. Agarwal, who was the mainstay of the side's top-order from 2019-21 and scored well, could only score 196 runs in 12 innings at an average of 16.33 and a strike rate of 122.50 since he was appointed the captain in 2022.

As per ESPNCricinfo, Shahrukh Khan, who was earlier reported to be among the ones to get released, has been retained. Punjab has also retained many of its core stars like skipper Shikhar Dhawan, Jonny Bairstow (England), Bhanuka Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka, England's hard-hitting batter Liam Livingstone, young Indian bowlers Arshdeep Singh and Rahul Chahar. Punjab Kings still have a power-packed batting lineup, with Bairstow and Dhawan as possible openers. Their bowling also looks solid with the likes of Chahar, Arshdeep and Kagiso Rabada.

They have INR 32.2 crore in their purse, along with three slots for overseas players. Punjab Kings:

Players released: Mayank Agarwal, Odean Smith, Vaibhav Arora, Benny Howell, Ishan Porel, Ansh Patel, Prerak Mankad, Sandeep Sharma, Writtick Chatterjee Current squad: Shikhar Dhawan (capt), Shahrukh Khan, Jonny Bairstow, Prabhsimran Singh, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Jitesh Sharma, Raj Bawa, Rishi Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Atharva Taide, Arshdeep Singh, Baltej Singh, Nathan Ellis, Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar, Harpreet Brar

In the last season, Punjab Kings had finished at the sixth position in the points table with 14 points and seven wins in 14 matches. (ANI)

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