IPL retention: ‘Unhappy’ Abhishek Sharma wants to quit SRH, but where will he go?

IPL – Sunrisers Hyderabad Vs. Royal Challengers Bengaluru – Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium, Hyderabad, India – 22 May 2026. Abhishek Sharma celebrates after reaching his half century. NEW DELHI: With the deadline looming, discussions about the retention and release of the Indian Premier League (IPL) are rife across franchises, with Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) opener Abhishek Sharma emerging as the biggest sticking point. With the franchise keen to hand over captaincy to Ishan Kishan and Pat Cummins likely to remain unavailable due to a busy international calendar in 2027, the aggressive opener is believed to explore a new home as early as the upcoming season.TimesofIndia.com can confirm that there have been informal dialogues with several franchises, but nothing substantial has materialized yet. Mumbai Indians (MI), Gujarat Titans (GT) and Punjab Kings (PBKS) are the teams mentioned as potential destinations, but a well-placed industry source says it’s a tricky situation for all parties involved.“It’s no longer a secret that Abhishek Sharma is unhappy at SRH with Ishan Kishan as captain. He’s been with the franchise for a long time and clearly had captaincy ambitions. Mumbai Indians, Gujarat Titans and Punjab Kings have been explored as potential destinations and we can’t rule out that Delhi Capitals Yuvraj is now part of his starting line-up,” he explains. source.The website approached SRH CEO K Shanmugam for comment and he termed the chatter as “not true”.It was further learned that the situation has been tense since the franchise’s decision to pass on captain Kishana last season. It may not be a surprise if he even settles for a non-captain role as the immediate priority seems to be to leave the SRH camp, the team he joined in 2019.“There aren’t many captaincy opportunities right now. Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) are two options, but most other teams look lined up. So even if SRH and Abhishek agree to part ways, the big question remains: where? And how will SRH stand even if they agree? Cash deal? Player trade? Lots of factors,” adds the source.Abhishek remains the hottest spot on the T20 circuit at the moment and the world No. 2 batsman will continue to attract a lot of attention in the coming weeks. While sources close to the players claim that “nothing is happening”, the IPL ecosystem is keeping a close eye on developments in the SRH camp.Many factors have to align for such a move to happen and it remains to be seen if SRH can convince one of their MVPs to stay. The move could be delayed, but as things stand, the future for both sides doesn’t look too bright. All franchises have more than a month to freeze their core before the mini-auction in December.