The highly anticipated retention event ahead of the 2024 season of the Indian Premier League occurred last week. All ten franchises participating in IPL 2024 disclosed the list of their retained and released players, marking the deadline of the retention window. Some big surprises occurred during the virtual retention event as all eyes now will be on the approaching mini-auction, scheduled for December 19.

A day after the retentions, Mumbai Indians and Gujarat Titans combined to produce the biggest player trade in the history of the IPL. The Gujarat-based franchise traded their skipper Hardik Pandya to Mumbai Indians in an all-cash trade. Pandya bagged a whopping INR 15 crores from the Ambani-owned Mumbai franchise in the historic trade with the exact amount being added to Gujarat Titans’ auction purse. 

Shubman Gill Named As Gujarat Titans’ Captain; Aakash Chopra Reacts

Gujarat Titans were quick to name Shubman Gill as their new captain following the Hardik Pandya trade. Gill will be leading the Gujarat team in the 2024 IPL edition under the coaching of Ashish Nehra. The 24-year-old claimed the orange cap in this year’s IPL season after hammering a record-breaking 890 runs, boasting a remarkable average of 59.33.

Meanwhile, former India batter Aakash Chopra has lauded Gujarat Titans’ management for handing the captaincy to Shubman Gill. Chopra acknowledged that there was a possibility of Kane Williamson becoming Titans’ captain, however, appeared happy with the franchise’s sharp move. The 46-year-old is keen to see how the captaincy challenge in IPL shapes young Gill going forward. 

“Shubman Gill is the new Gujarat Titans captain. A lot of things have happened to him at 23 years of age, which is fascinating and fantastic. It was almost confirmed that Shubman would become the captain as soon as Hardik left.” Aakash Chopra said

“There was a school of thought about whether Kane Williamson should be made captain. You have an example of Hyderabad already. Kane is such a good person; he drops himself if he is not doing well.” the former India opener further added