IPL 2025 wasn’t fruitful for all of the Indian gamers. Under is the listing of 4 present Indian T20I stars who could possibly be dropped for subsequent collection.
The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 is in the history books now. With the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) fulfilling their dream of winning a championship, the IPL 2025 concluded with a bang and fireworks. Barring a couple of franchises, almost all the teams were in contention for the playoffs till late in the tournament due to some brilliant performances.
However, the same cannot be said for some players. While the likes of Ayush Mhatre, Naman Dhir, and Priyansh Arya startled, some well-established names let their teams down. It was important for Indian cricket to see some emerging names do well since the next major men’s ICC white-ball event will be the T20 World Cup in India next year.
Ever since Suryakumar Yadav has taken the reins, India have been building a well-oiled team with a great bunch of players towards the main goal of retaining the World Cup. However, not all experienced players part of that core group did well. Below are four such players who were in India’s last T20I squad (vs Eng) but are in danger of getting dropped due to a poor IPL campaign.
4. Ravi Bishnoi
Retained as an INR 11 crore pick, Ravi Bishnoi was a big letdown for the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). He entered the campaign as a senior player for LSG but was eventually dropped for a rookie leg-spinner, Digvesh Rathi, who was superb for Lucknow.
Bishnoi played 11 games but took only nine wickets at an economy of 10.83, making him the most expensive spinner in the league. His bowling strike rate of 24.66 was also one of the worst. The LSG leg-break bowler has been a consistent figure in the Indian T20I setup. However, with Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakaravarthy being two of the best spin-bowling options, Bishnoi’s chances could be limited in the near future.
3. Rinku Singh
Similar to Bishnoi, Rinku Singh was also retained by his franchise, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). It was a sensible decision, but after a poor IPL 2025, don’t be surprised if he gets released ahead of IPL 2026. Having been retained for INR 13 crore, Rinku only managed to score 206 runs in 11 innings in IPL 2025. While his SR of 153.7 was decent, Rinku averaged a mere 29.42, despite batting too low.
He has had a consistent run in the Indian T20I setup ever since making his debut in 2023. But the contrasting form in recent times has put a question mark on his impact. In his first year (2023), Rinku scored 262 at an average of 65.50 and at a strike rate of 180.68. However, since IPL 2024, Rinku has mustered only 190 runs at a poor average and SR of 21.11 and 138.68, respectively, for India. Rinku’s downfall has coincided with another stellar season for Shashank Singh, who can get a look in for a finisher’s role soon.
2. Nitish Kumar Reddy
Here comes the only all-rounder on the list Nitish Kumar Reddy, who was initially part of India’s team for England T20Is earlier this year. However, he was replaced with Shivam Dube after Reddy injured himself again. NKR made a return to competitive cricket for the first time after a successful BGT.
However, Reddy couldn’t quite nail his role in an underperforming season for the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH). With the bat, he could make just 182 runs at an average of 22.75, which is quite poor by his standards. His strike rate of 118.95 also provided more harm than fruition for SRH. To provide context, Reddy had an average and SR of 33.67 and 142.92 in his debut IPL season in 2024.
1. Mohammed Shami
Mohammed Shami’s return to IPL cricket in 2025 was far from the fairytale many expected. Just months after helping India win the Champions Trophy, the experienced pacer endured a torrid campaign with SunRisers Hyderabad.
Despite being bought for INR 10 crore, Shami struggled for rhythm, managing just six wickets in nine matches at an economy of 11.23, which was one of the worst in the tournament. His lowest point came against Punjab Kings, conceding 75 runs in four overs — the second-worst figures in IPL history.
Eventually, SRH dropped him, bringing in Sri Lanka’s Ehsan Malinga, who grabbed 13 wickets in just seven games and shored up their death bowling. Now, with Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Khaleel Ahmed and other pacers doing a fantastic job, Shami’s T20 career in the blue of India might be done and dusted!
Mohammed Shami IPL 2025 stats
- Wickets: 6
- Innings: 9
- Economy: 11.23
- Strike Rate: 30.00
- Bowling Average: 56.17
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