The 19th season of the Indian Premier League is just about to start. Royal Challengers Bangalore and Sunrisers Hyderabad are going to clash in the first match of the season. From Virat Kohli to Chris Gayle and MS Dhoni, many legendary players have contributed significantly in making IPL the biggest cricket league in the world. There may be some names among these who may not play in the 20th season of IPL. Here are 7 such players, who can retire after IPL 2026.
ms dhoni
The first name that comes to mind is MS Dhoni, who has been a part of the Indian Premier League since 2008. Now the burden of captaincy has gone from Dhoni’s shoulders because Ruturaj Gaikwad has shown good performance as captain. With the arrival of Sanju Samson, CSK has also got a wicketkeeper who can handle the responsibility after Dhoni. It is possible that this time Dhoni will play in Chennai Super Kings team only as a mentor and after setting everything, he will say goodbye to IPL.
Ajinkya Rahane
Kolkata Knight Riders have confirmed that Ajinkya Rahane will captain the KKR team in IPL 2026. But if Rahane’s personal performance is poor then difficulties may increase for him. After the poor performance in IPL 2026, hardly any team would want to invest their time in him, because when the mega auction took place, Rahane was not even sold in the first round. Still, KKR had shown confidence in him.
Ishant Sharma
37-year-old Ishant Sharma was able to take only 4 wickets after playing 7 matches for Gujarat Titans in IPL 2025. He is a part of the Gujarat team this time too, but if his performance in IPL 2026 was also disappointing, then perhaps this could be the last season for him.
Mitchell Starc
Mitchell Starc has been one of the most lethal bowlers in the world and has taken a total of 31 wickets in the last 2 seasons. Starc proves to be very lethal with the new ball and bowls well in the death overs also. But considering the international cricket schedule and workload management, Starc may leave franchise cricket.
david miller
Veteran South African player David Miller will play for Delhi Capitals in IPL 2026. Last season was very disappointing for 36-year-old Miller, where he was able to score only 153 runs in 11 matches. Not a single fifty came from his bat. Competition in IPL is increasing every year, in such a situation, if Miller’s bat does not work even in 2026, then it is possible that his IPL career may not see the next season.
Sunil Narine
Recently, West Indies’ legendary all-rounder Andre Russell took retirement from IPL. If IPL 2026 does not go well for 37-year-old Narine, then he too can follow Russell’s path. Apart from taking 192 wickets, Narine has also scored 1780 runs in his IPL career of 140 matches.
trent bolt
New Zealand’s legendary player Trent Boult has retired from international cricket, but is still active in franchise cricket. He will play for Mumbai Indians in IPL 2026, but keep in mind that he will also turn 37 very soon.
