SRH to retain Klaasen, Cummins, and Abhishek for upcoming season

South Africa's powerhouse batsman Heinrich Klaasen is reportedly the top retention choice for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the upcoming IPL 2025 season. According to ESPNcricinfo, Klaasen is set to receive a whopping INR 23 crore (USD 2.74 million approx.) as the franchise's first retained player. Additionally, Sunrisers Hyderabad has also secured retention deals with Australian all-rounder Pat Cummins, the former captain of the team in 2024, at INR 18 crore (USD 2.14 million approx.), and Indian all-rounder Abhishek Sharma at INR 14 crore (USD 1.67 million approx).

It is understood that Sunrisers are also likely to firm up the retentions of Travis Head and Nitish Kumar Reddy soon. The IPL has set October 31 as the deadline for retentions ahead of the mega auction that will be held later this year.

Klaasen smacked 479 runs from 15 innings at IPL 2024, at a strike rate of 171.07, Sunrisers' second-highest scorer behind Head and Abhishek. Abhished had scored 484 in 16 innings with a strike rate of 204.21 - the highest strike rate among the top-ten run-scorers last season. Cummins, of course, had captained Sunrisers to the final, where they fell short against Kolkata Knight Riders.

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