Not many changes in Gujarat Titans' winning formula, release just 6 players including English opener, Caribbean all-rounder

The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 auction is set to take place next month in Kochi. After a long gap of three years, the home-and-away format will be making its comeback. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had set a deadline of November 15 for franchises to submit their list of retained and released players. Here's a look at Hardik Pandya-led Gujarat Titans (GT), a franchise that won the IPL trophy in their maiden season. 
 

Released players: Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Lockie Ferguson, Dominic Drakes, Gurkeerat Singh, Jason Roy, Varun Aaron
 

Retained players: Shubman Gill, David Miller, Wriddhiman Saha, Matthew Wade, Abhinav Manohar, Sai Sudarshan, Hardik Pandya (c), Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Vijay Shankar, R Sai Kishore, Jayant Yadav, Mohammad Shami, Alzarri Joseph, Yash Dayal, Noor Ahmad, Darshan Nalkande, Pradeep Sangwan

Remaining purse: 19.25 crore
 

Titans' golden run in IPL 2022
On paper, Pandya-led Titans were not considered one of the most balanced teams of the tournament. Also, their star recruit Jason Roy pulled out of the tournament citing personal reasons. But Titans had a shrewd Ashish Nehra at the helm of things and with his guidance coupled with Pandya’s spirited leadership, Titans defied all odds and impressed many in the first few matches. 
 

Soon enough, they were beating the best teams of the tournament in crunch games and finished at the top of the points table. They continued their supremacy in the qualifier and won the final battle against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in a rather one-sided affair. Pandya’s GT became the first team since the inaugural season to win the title in their maiden season.