England's Kevin Pietersen, South Africa's Dale Steyn and Australia's Mitchell Johnson were among the prominent names to be released by franchises for the 2017 edition of the Indian Premier League.
With Steyn ruling himself out of next year's IPL because of an injury, Gujarat Lions' decision to release him from its rolls was not surprising.
Rising Pune Supergiants however decided not to retain the popular Kevin Pietersen. The controversial batsman had to leave the 2016 edition of the League midway because of a calf injury. RPS, which still has the likes of M.S. Dhoni, Steven Smith and Faf du Plessis under its contract, has the released the maximum number of players (11) including all-rounder Thisara Perera.
Mitchell Johnson, who is short on match practice after retiring from international cricket last year, was made available for auction by Kings XI Punjab which also decided to release South Africa's Kyle Abbott.
In all, the franchises have retained as many as 140 cricketers including 44 overseas players.
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