Travis Head and Nitish Kumar Reddy complete Sunrisers Hyderabad IPL 2025 retentions

New Delhi: The Indian Premier League (IPL) is poised for a grand return in 2025, featuring a mega auction for the first time in three years. Teams must finalize their player retention and release decisions by October 31 (Thursday) ahead of the auction. Among the franchises under keen scrutiny is Sunrisers Hyderabad, who finished as runners-up in what was an extraordinary campaign last season. With such a strong squad, the challenge of retaining only five or six players is significant. However, it appears a decision has already been reached.

According to a report by ESPN Cricinfo, Sunrisers Hyderabad is poised to retain Heinrich Klaasen for Rs 23 crore, exceeding the Rs 18 crore cap for the first retention. Following that, their captain from the previous season, Pat Cummins, is set to be retained for Rs 18 crore. Additionally, the dynamic Australian opener Travis Head is also likely to be retained for Rs 14 crore, alongside his opening partner Abhishek Sharma, who will receive the same retention amount.

A player who has become a hot property in Indian cricket is pace bowling all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy. Following an impressive debut series against Bangladesh, he has been called up to the India squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Sunrisers Hyderabad are set to retain him for Rs 6 crore, despite him being a capped Indian player. With these five retentions, Sunrisers Hyderabad will forfeit Rs 75 crore from their IPL 2025 auction purse, entering the mega auction with a budget of Rs 45 crore to complete their squad.