"Dhoni would have been the most upset" - Mohammad Kaif's massive claim on star all-rounder's retirement ahead of IPL 2026 Auction

Former India batter Mohammad Kaif made a massive claim on star all-rounder Andre Russell's retirement ahead of the IPL 2026 auction. Russell retired from the league after he was released by the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) ahead of the upcoming auction.

Kaif reckoned that Chennai Super Kings (CSK) would have had their eyes set on roping in Russell at the auction after he was released. However, with the star all-rounder announcing his retirement, Mohammad Kaif felt that MS Dhoni and CSK would have been the most upset.

"We are talking a lot about Green that teams will target him. If teams have just a few slots to fill and go all-out for a player, they might get a lot more than their worth. The franchises are not looking at money in such a scenario. He can go close to 25 crores as well. I think Dhoni would have been the most upset now with Russell's retirement. He and CSK. They had him in their plans. They were front-runners if KKR did not buy Russell back. I think he would have gone 99% to CSK," he said on his YouTube channel.

Notably, another star all-rounder, Glenn Maxwell, also pulled out of the IPL 2026 auction. Mohammad Kaif reflected that self-doubt may have been the reason behind Maxwell's shocking decision. While Maxwell had a poor season last year, Kaif believed that he would certainly have gotten a buyer at the upcoming auction.

"I think Maxwell had doubts about himself. Don't keep Russell in the same category. Maxwell would not go unsold for sure. Maybe he thought he would keep going from one franchise to another and could not take that disrespect. Maxwell had more downs than ups in the IPL. I think he himself had less belief. But he would definitely get a buyer," Mohammad Kaif added.

Maxwell has played 141 matches in the IPL. He has scored 2819 runs at an average of 23.88 and a strike-rate of 155.14 with 18 half-centuries.

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Mohammad Kaif on Andre Russell's retirement and KKR roping him in as 'Power Coach'

Mohammad Kaif reckoned that Andre Russell did not decide to retire by himself but took the call after he was released by KKR. In a surprising move, KKR roped Russell in as a 'Power Coach' for IPL 2026 after his retirement decision.

Kaif made a huge claim, stating that KKR would have gotten worried about Russell going to another franchise and delivering for them. To rectify their mistake of releasing him and not wanting to give the advantage to other teams, KKR decided to include Russell in their coaching staff.

"I think this decision was not made by Russell. They did not plan long-term. They released him and thought of getting money and dominating the auction. But now, after many questions, maybe they got scared that if Russell goes to CSK, for example, and he can be a match-winner and come back anytime, people will talk that they left him before. So they got scared. Now they thought he is their brand, so why give the advantage to someone else? So they planned to get him on the staff and correct their mistake. Maybe he also wanted to be with them till the end and so wanted to continue with them," he said.

Further, Mohammad Kaif also pointed out that KKR would have thought about such mistakes they made in the past. He highlighted how they released Chris Gayle after the 2010 season. Gayle joined the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) midway through the 2011 season, and the rest, as they say, was history.

Kaif also highlighted a recent example where they released Shreyas Iyer, who led them to their third title in 2024. Iyer moved to the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in 2025 and not only delivered with the bat but also took them to the final. Therefore, he reckoned that KKR would have thought about not repeating the same mistakes and letting Russell be a part of any other franchise.