Why Gujarat Titans Traded Sherfane Rutherford To Mumbai Indians? Big 'Washington Sundar' Plan Revealed For IPL 2026

Gujarat Titans have managed to retain their core squad intact after the IPL retention deadline day. The IPL 2022 champions released five players and traded Sherfane Rutherford to the Mumbai Indians, who happen to be one of the most sought-after T20 players currently.

Why Gujarat Titans Released Sherfane Rutherford?

Gujarat will have 12.90 crore to spend in the IPL mini auction, which will be held on December 16. Rutherford's exit raised questions on Gujarat's strategy, but assistant coach Parthiv Patel insisted that the rise of Washington Sundar is behind the decision to release the West Indies all-rounder via a trade deal.

He said on JioStar, "The kind of squad we had built, it is very important for us to make sure that we keep that continuity going. And that's exactly what we tried to do. I thought last year in the auction we had built a solid squad. And unfortunately, we could not go all the way. I think that is the reason why we have not let go of a lot of players. Yes, but you still want to keep space for a few young players to come in or for few new comers to come in. And that is the reason why we’ve let go of Sherfane Rutherford, Gerald Coetzee, who again has not played too much of cricket after the IPL finished. The rise of Washington Sundar in the last year, I think that is something which we also thought about it and that is the reason why we've let go of Sherfane Rutherford."

Washington Sundar is India's Most Sought-After All-Rounder

Sundar has become an integral part of the Indian team and is expected to feature in a more prominent role next season. Bought for INR 3.2 crore, he played only six matches for GT last season due to the “Impact Player” rule but has proved his utility time and time again.

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Sundar has already emerged as one of the emerging all-rounders across three formats, and he could light up the IPL 2026.

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