Lucknow Super Giants will keep faith in India quick Mayank Yadav despite his ongoing back-injury rehab, while choosing to release Ravi Bishnoi, David Miller and Akash Deep before next month’s IPL retention deadline.
Mayank’s place was the biggest talking point internally. The 23-year-old, retained for INR 11 crore at the 2025 mega auction, managed only two games last season before a stress fracture cut him down. He has since had surgery and, according to a support-staff member, is “on track to be bowling at roughly 85% by February”. LSG’s cricket brains trust – director of cricket Tom Moody, head coach Justin Langer and talent boss Bharat Arun – felt that pace in the high-140s remains “too rare to let go”, even if there is some risk attached.
Alongside Mayank, the franchise will keep its established spine: Rishabh Pant, Nicholas Pooran, Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh and Ayush Badoni are all safe. So too are mystery spinner Digvesh Rathi, who topped the club’s wicket charts in his debut campaign, and India seamer Avesh Khan. Uncapped trio Abdul Samad, Himmat Singh and Shahbaz Ahmed stay on, while the fast-bowling pool still features Mohsin Khan, Akash Singh, Prince Yadav and M Siddharth.
Bishnoi, in contrast, has run out of credit. Bought as an uncapped leggie for INR 4 crore in 2022, then retained for INR 11 crore last year, he delivered 29 wickets across his first two seasons with respectable economy figures. The dip since has been marked: 10 wickets at 8.77 in 2024, nine at 10.83 in 2025. One analyst put it bluntly: “The impact has tailed off and franchises look at match-winning moments. They just weren’t there often enough.” LSG sounded out several teams for a trade but found no takers, so the leg-spinner will head back into the auction pool.
South Africa’s Miller and India seamer Akash Deep were high-profile 2025 purchases – INR 7.5 crore and INR 8 crore respectively – yet neither nailed down a spot. Miller made 153 runs in 11 knocks at a strike-rate of 127, and insiders say his role overlapped awkwardly with Markram and Pooran. Akash Deep, who struggled for rhythm on the Ekana surface, took only five wickets while conceding close to ten an over. “Sometimes you bite the bullet,” a senior LSG official said. “We had to free up purse and spots.”
Retained core (expected):
• Rishabh Pant (c/wk)
• Nicholas Pooran (wk)
• Aiden Markram
• Mitchell Marsh
• Ayush Badoni
• Mayank Yadav
• Digvesh Rathi
• Avesh Khan
• Shahbaz Ahmed
• Abdul Samad, Himmat Singh
• Mohsin Khan, Akash Singh, Prince Yadav, M Siddharth
Released:
• Ravi Bishnoi
• David Miller
• Akash Deep
• Others to be confirmed
What it means
LSG will head into the 2026 auction with a solid nucleus and a sizeable purse – roughly INR 28-30 crore once the formal list is lodged – looking for a second specialist spinner and at least one power-play hitter. Much still hinges on Mayank’s back. But if the speed gun flicks past 150kph again, the gamble could look a bargain.
