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New Delhi: Legendary Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and two-time IPL champion Andre Russell has announced his decision to retire from the cash-rich league on Sunday, November 30. The all-rounder was released by the Kolkata-based franchise ahead of the mega auction.
In a 12-season IPL career, Russell has played 140 matches, scoring 2651 runs at a strike rate of 174.18 and picking up 123 wickets at an economy of 9.51 with best bowling figures of 5/15. He made his IPL debut in 2012 for Delhi Daredevils (now known as Delhi Capitals) before he was bought by KKR in the 2014 auction.
He played 133 of his IPL matches for the Kolkata-based franchise, winning two titles (2014 and 2024). He won the IPL MVP award twice during his career, in 2015 and 2019. His explosive hitting made him one of the most dangerous finishers in IPL history.
At the time of his retirement from the IPL, he had smashed 223 maximums, putting him seventh on the all-time list of six hitters, just behind Chris Gayle, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, AB de Villiers and David Warner.
However, his performance has dipped in recent seasons. He only managed to score 167 runs and took eight wickets at an economy of 11.94, raising many questions about his fitness and form. That decline in form most likely influenced KKR's decision to release him.
Russell revealed his retirement news via an Instagram post and wrote that he will not sign with another franchise and instead join KKR's support staff for the 2026 season as their "power coach."
"When I made this decision, I felt like it was the best decision at this point. I don't want to fade out, I want to leave a legacy behind. It's best to retire when fans ask "why? You still have some more in you. You still could go for a bit longer." instead of "yeah, you should have done it years back," Russell wrote.
Russell further added that when a player goes through social media, and keeps seeing himself photoshopped in different jerseys, he felt weird to see himself in any colour other than purple & gold, and those thoughts kept going through his head, leading him to a few sleepless nights.
"There have been a lot of conversations between me and Mr. Venky Mysore and also Mr. Shah Rukh Khan, about another chapter in my IPL journey. They have shown me love and respect and have appreciate whatever I've been doing on the field. To be in a setup that's familiar, matters to me a lot," he added.
Russell is still not hanging up his playing boots completely. In his post, he wrote that he plans to continue playing in other franchise leagues around the world.
