IPL 2025 Foreign Players that are Likely to get Retained

Jos Buttler and Nicholas Pooran among favorites as we look at the best foreign players that are likely to get retained ahead of IPL 2025 Auction.

History says Foreign players in the IPL have always considered India as their home. Be it Ab de Villiers and Chris Gayle in Bangalore, David Warner in Hyderabad, Lasith Malinga and Kieron Pollard in Mumbai, these players have always got the reception as if they belonged to India. Even among current players, there are a lot of players who have been associated with only one city for long, and are already finding a connection with the city. 

With the IPL 2025 Mega Auction fast approaching, Foreign players will once again be in focus for all 10 teams. There are definitely restrictions when it comes to a Mega Auction, so even as a lot of quality foreign players deserve to get retained, the restrictions won’t allow that. But even then, there are a lot of Overseas players that teams won’t let go ahead of the Auction. 

Now, the IPL 2025 Mega Auction rules are not officially out yet, so all we can do right now is speculate based on the best probability. So, assuming the best possible scenarios with a maximum of 3 Overseas players being allowed to be retained per team, let’s look at the Foreign players that are likely to get retained by all 10 teams ahead of the IPL 2025 Mega Auction. 

IPL 2025 Best Retained Foreign Players List for Chennai Super Kings (CSK)

1. Matheesha Pathirana
2. Devon Conway 

The Chennai Super Kings does have quality Indian players in their side, but when it comes to Overseas players, the team has two names that have the highest chance of getting retained. Among the current crop, Matheesha Pathirana as the first-choice, and Devon Conway as the second-choice player looks most likely to get retained. Beyond this, CSK can look at Rachin Ravindra and Maheesh Theekshana, but with 4 Indians already in line, it won’t be possible to retain more than 2 Overseas players.   

IPL 2025 Best Retained Foreign Players List for Delhi Capitals (DC)

1. Mitchell Marsh
2. Jake Fraser-McGurk
3. Tristan Stubbs

Delhi Capitals have three solid Indian players that are likely to get retained. This leaves us with space for three Overseas players, and we have three solid Overseas players competing for those spots. Among the current bunch of Overseas players, Mitchell Marsh, Jake Fraser-McGurk, and Tristan Stubbs are the standout ones. If given an option, DC would like to retain all three of them in order. 

IPL 2025 Best Retained Foreign Players List for Gujarat Titans (GT)

1. Rashid Khan
2. David Miller

Talking about Gujarat Titans, there aren’t a lot of Overseas players that GT would like to retain. Among the current bunch of Overseas players, only Rashid Khan and David Miller may be on GT’s mind when it comes to retained players. The team can also go for Noor Ahmad, but for that, GT will have to compromise on Indian players, which they won’t do. 

IPL 2025 Best Retained Foreign Players List for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)

1. Andre Russell
2. Sunil Narine

Talking about Kolkata Knight Riders, the team has two champion Overseas players who will get retained above anyone else in the team. While Iyer and Rinku lead the Indian bunch Russel and Narine are the solid Overseas players that will get retained without a second thought by Kolkata Knight Riders. Other than these two, there are Phil Salt and Mitchell Starc in contention. However, it looks unlikely these two will get retained given the quality Indian players who will get preferred above them. 

IPL 2025 Best Retained Foreign Players List for Lucknow Super Giants (LSG)

1. Nicholas Pooran
2. Quinton de Kock
3. Marcus Stoinis 

The Lucknow Super Giants have pretty straightforward retentions when it comes to their Overseas players. There are three solid names, i.e., Nicholas Pooran, Quinton de Kock, and Marcus Stoinis whom LSG would not leave at any cost. What’s more, there aren’t quality Indian players other than KL Rahul, Ravi Bishnoi, and Mayank Yadav, who can match the quality of the Overseas players. 

IPL 2025 Best Retained Foreign Players List for Mumbai Indians (MI)

1. Tim David
2. Nuwan Thushara

The Indian players-centric team, Mumbai Indians would ideally want to retain as many Indian players as possible. But given the restrictions in terms of the Overseas players any team can retain, it looks likely that MI will have to retain two Overseas players or one at the least. Among the current crop, Tim David remains the front-runner to get retained with Nuwan Thushara as the second-choice option. 

IPL 2025 Best Retained Foreign Players List for Punjab Kings (PBKS)

1. Sam Curran
2. Kagiso Rabada

Punjab Kings as a team lacks the quality punch when it comes to any player in the team – be it Indian or Overseas players. They will certainly have the issue of allocating a budget for their retained players. That’s the reason, they are likely to retain as little as possible. But if they were to retain Overseas players, they would go after Sam Curran and Kagiso Rabada in order.  

IPL 2025 Best Retained Foreign Players List for Rajasthan Royals (RR)

1. Jos Buttler
2. Trent Boult

Talking about Rajasthan Royals, Jos Buttler remains an unquestionable retention when it comes to Overseas players. But other than Jos, RR will try to retain Trent Boult too. But for Boult to get retained, BCCI should allow at least six players given they have four solid Indian players already waiting on the sidelines.  

IPL 2025 Best Retained Foreign Players List for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB)

1. Faf du Plessis
2. Cameron Green
3. Glenn Maxwell

Talking about RCB, they already have their Overseas players sorted, but they have one big question in front of them, and that is about Faf du Plessis. Du Plessis is definitely quality when it comes to performance as well as fitness. But with age against him, it will be interesting to see if RCB would retain him, and block a place for one player. If this was not a Mega Auction, du Plessis’ place wouldn’t have been questionable. However, with this being a Mega Auction, the question arises. Even then, RCB may want to give du Plessis one more chance, and alongside him, RCB will mostly retain Glenn Maxwell and Cameron Green among Overseas players. 

IPL 2025 Best Retained Foreign Players List for Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH)

1. Heinrich Klaasen
2. Pat Cummins
3. Travis Head

Last but not least, Sunrisers Hyderabad have the best talent when it comes to Overseas players. Barring a handful of Indian players, SRH are an Overseas-centric team. This is also clearly visible in the kind of quality players that they have. Among the star options that SRH may look at from an Overseas players perspective, Heinrich Klaasen, Pat Cummins, and Travis Head are the best three options available for them.   

So, that’s about the confirmed best retained overseas players list for all 10 teams for IPL 2025. 

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ALSO READ: IPL 2025: All 10 Teams Best Retained Squad Players List

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Adesh Kothari

Adesh Kothari is the founder of AK4Tsay1 Cricalytics with over 20 years of experience following Cricket.

Cricket to him is like what Football is to Lionel Messi, Singing is to Lata Mangeshkar, Dancing is to Michael Jackson, and Acting is to Clint Eastwood.

Besides his effervescent love for Cricket, Adesh is an MBA by qualification.