IPL Retention 2019: Ranking the teams based on retained players

#6 Kolkata Knight Riders

KKR's X-factor players Chris Lynn and Andre Russell didn't perform as expected in 2018. They have a quality Indian contingent with a good mix of youth and experience. But the team lacks bench strength if star players are injured or out-of-form and they need quality players to replace them.

Also, the fast bowling is young and talented but inexperienced. They need to find a good replacement for Starc. Andre Russell is prone to injury and Sunil Narine is still not his previous best. The bowling department looks incomplete and lacks a leader. The team was inactive in the entire trading window, but have made some right moves by releasing underperforming players ahead of the auctions.

Retained: Dinesh Karthik, Robin Uthappa, Chris Lynn, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Shubman Gill, Piyush Chawla, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Shivam Mavi, Nitish Rana, Rinku Singh, Kamlesh Nagarkoti

Released: Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Johnson, Tom Curran, Cameron Delport, Ishank Jaggi, Vinay Kumar, Apoorv Wankhade, Javon Searles

Salary cap available: 15.20 cr

Available slots: 12; Indian 7, Overseas 5 5