CSK may release one or both of their Rs 14.2 crore buys Prashant Veer and Kartik Sharma

Preparations for IPL 2027 have begun. The BCCI has made clear when all the teams must announce their retention lists, the players they are keeping. Meanwhile, there are signs of a major shake-up at Chennai Super Kings, one of the IPL's champion teams.

At the last auction, the team paid big money for two players. There is talk that the team may release one or both of them. Doing so would add to the team's purse, and the money could be used to buy more players. The two are Prashant Veer and Kartik Sharma. Both are regarded as rising stars.

Chennai Super Kings bought Prashant Veer for Rs 14.2 crore at the 2026 IPL auction. His base price was only Rs 30 lakh. When bidding opened, L&T and Mumbai Indians were in the contest. Chennai Super Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad then joined in, and the price climbed into the crores. Sunrisers Hyderabad made their final bid at Rs 14 crore. Chennai then took him into their squad for Rs 14.20 crore.

Prashant is a resident of Amethi in Uttar Pradesh. He played six matches for Chennai, scoring 90 runs and taking no wicket. The team feels he did not live up to expectations, and that is why there is talk of releasing him.

Kartik Sharma's story is similar. The bidding for him also started at Rs 30 lakh. Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad jumped in first. KKR and Chennai Super Kings then entered the contest for him. Later Sunrisers Hyderabad returned to the bidding. They made a final bid of Rs 14 crore, and Chennai took Kartik for Rs 14.20 crore. Last season Kartik played 11 matches for the team and scored 295 runs. That means the team did not get adequate return on the money spent.

Put simply, Chennai have spent more than Rs 28 crore on the two together. The auction for the new season is coming up, and the team does not have much money in hand. They currently have only Rs 2.4 crore left. Even if it rises by Rs 5 crore this year, the amount will reach only Rs 7.5 crore.

This means that even if the team wants to buy a player, it will not be possible, because other teams will have more money. Meanwhile, it is understood that the team is thinking of releasing one of the two to increase its financial room. If possible, that player could be bought back at a lower price.

Next year's IPL auction will be held on December 16. The retention list will be announced on November 15. By that day, all ten teams will have to say which players they will keep and which they will let go. On November 15, it remains to be seen whom Chennai Super Kings and the other teams retain and whom they drop. In the coming days, all the teams will have to think hard about this.