Mysore said that while Russell’s contract value stood at ₹12 crore, retaining him for the 2025 season would have

resulted in an ₹18 crore deduction from KKR’s auction purse. “Some people missed the fundamental point, which is the

[purse] deduction for us was 18 crore, not 12 crore by releasing Dre,” he said. “Although his contract value was 12

crore, the deduction from our purse was 18 crore in 2025. A lot of people missed that and said, oh, why would KKR not

see value in a person who is at 12 crores? 18 crores, which would be deducted from our purse if we had reattained him,

is a lot of money in the context of an auction. That was the trigger.”

He added that mini-auctions require maximum flexibility. “In mini-auctions, you want to go with as much as you can to

have the flexibility to look at options that might come your way. So from that perspective, if it was 12 crore, I think

the decision would’ve been very different.”

When asked whether Russell would have been retained had the purse deduction been only ₹12 crore, Mysore admitted the

equation would have changed. “It would have made a huge difference. Although 12 cr is still a lot, but could we get a

player of his quality for 12 cr in the auction? It's very unlikely in a mini auction. But releasing 18 cr from the

auction purse, it's a fair amount of money.”

The decision to release Russell, Mysore stressed, was not a last-minute thought but a late announcement after days of

exploring all possible alternatives. “When you put someone in an auction, you have to go with an assumption you may not

be able to get a player back. So if that's the case, then what are your options? How do you resolve it? What's your

structure? All those discussions happen. In the days leading up to the retention deadline, we made the call.”

Andre Russell had sleepness nights

Mysore revealed that Russell was emotionally shaken after being informed. Having been with KKR since 2014 and never

returning to the auction pool since then, the development unsettled him. “He said, ‘wow, never been in an auction since

2014.’… It hit him after a couple of days. He came back to me and said, ‘oh, I've really had a lot of sleepless nights

wondering about where all of this could go. I'm so used to the purple and gold, Knight Riders and relationships I have

built with the franchise, you and the owners.’”

The CEO also disclosed that discussions about Russell possibly retiring from the IPL surfaced during their

conversations. Mysore said the idea gained momentum after he spoke to KKR co-owner Shah Rukh Khan. “Somewhere that

conversation [retiring from IPL] did come up as an option and he gave it more thought. For a variety of reasons, it

appealed to him and said, yeah, why not? Let's do this.” According to Mysore, it was SRK who suggested that retirement

could be a dignified and meaningful next step for the allrounder during this transition phase.

Mysore explained that the suggestion came from a place of empathy, acknowledging the anxieties players face toward the

end of their careers. “I could see he was agonising over it, and when I shared this with SRK, it was actually SRK's

suggestion. Because, see, a player is thinking somewhere at the back of his mind, what happens after I hang up my boots?

But I don't think they want to think about it also so much because professional athletes are like that. They believe I'm

still good, and Dre still is – he is fantastic and playing other leagues.”