LSG to let Rishabh Pant go? 3 Potential shocking releases ahead of IPL 2026 mini-auction

Rishabh Pant for LSG - (Source: AFP)

The IPL teams are busy figuring out their best possible squads for the upcoming season, as the IPL has set a deadline to submit the retention list by November 15. There are a few obvious names who had underwhelming performances in IPL 2025 to be released and headline the IPL 2026 mini-auction, which is reported to take place mid-December. 

However, like every year, a few shocking names too can headline the auction and send the internet into a shockwave. Meanwhile, this article will shed light on potential shocking releases for the IPL 2026 mini-auction.

1. Matheesha Pathirana

One shocking name that might be released for IPL 2026 is CSK's Matheesha Pathirana. The right-arm seamer had an off-season as the Sri Lanka star only picked up 13 wickets in 12 matches, which is actually lower than his previous season.

Also, injury is a massive concern for Matheesha Pathirana as he missed a couple of IPL games. Further, he wasn't part of Sri Lanka's plans for the Asia Cup as well and sat on the bench because of an underwhelming performance in a solitary match. 

Matheesha Pathirana's IPL 2025 and IPL 2024 stats

If we look at Pathirana's stats, then he has seen a massive dip in his performance as he has taken fewer wickets than his 2024 season and also leaked runs at a much-higher rate, which is a concerning sign for Men in Yellow.

2. Rishabh Pant

Rishabh Pant, who became the highest-paid player in the history of IPL, failed to live up to the expectations and could not perform with the bat. Pant, who had high hopes riding on him, was the worst batter for LSG and amassed only 269 runs in 13 innings, which includes a century, that too came in the last match of the group stages. 

Besides batting, Pant also had a miserable outing as a captain as Lucknow Super Giants failed to qualify for the playoffs. Thus, LSG management needs to reassess their strategy for the coming season and letting Pant go would be a shocking release.

For Pant, he was just awful with the bat and scored nearly half the runs he amassed in IPL 2024 with Delhi Capitals. Further, he saw a massive dip in his strike-rate as well.

3. Rashid Khan

Rashid Khan had a miserable season for the Gujarat Titans in IPL 2025 and looked off-colour with the ball. Overall, Rashid has been underwhelming in his performance in the shortest format of the match, as also seen with Afghanistan.

Talking about IPL 2025, the Afghan captain took just nine wickets in 15 innings and gave away runs at a shocking rate of 9.35.

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