Courtesy: BCCI/IPL
Rajasthan Royals had a forgettable season in IPL 2025 as they finished ninth in the points table with just four wins in their 14 league matches.One of the main reasons for RR’s early exit this year was a lack of support from the middle-order in the batting lineup. Even after the openers gave a good start while chasing a target, RR still ended up losing the game on several occasions due to a poor show from the rest of the batters.
One of the crucial players from RR’s middle-order is Shimron Hetmyer who wasn’t impressive with the bat throughout the season and looked out of touch. Hetmyer scored 239 runs from 14 matches in IPL 2025 at an average of 21.72. He also had a poor season last year where he could only amass 113 runs from 12 matches. Now, after continous poor seasons, it looks like that RR will let go of Hetmyer ahead of the next edition of the IPL in 2026. So, which team can pick him for the next season.
Here’s the probable list of teams who can target Shimron Hetmyer if he gets released by RR ahead of IPL 2025
Lucknow Super Giants
Lucknow Super Giants had a star studded batting line up for IPL 2025 but only a few players were able to go up to the mark. Their opening batters like Aiden Markram and Mitchell Marsh were among the constant performers along with Nicholas Pooran. However, apart from Ayush Badoni, none of the batters including skipper RIshabh Pant, David Miller were able to change the gears in the middle-order and play the role of a finisher. Now, ahead of the next IPL season in 2026, LSG are likely to go for Shimron Hetmyer if RR releases him ahead of the auction.
Gujarat Titans
Gujarat Titans got some star performers in the top order in IPL 2025 including the likes of skipper Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan and Jos Buttler. Apart from that, Sherfane Rutherford also turned out to be a key performer coming to bat at number four for GT. However, the middle-order couldn’t contribute much which became one of the main reasons for GT”s exit after losing the eliminator against Mumbai Indians. Now, looking to find a stable batter in the middle-order, GT are likely to bid for Shimron Hetmyer if he gets released by RR ahead of the auction for IPL 2026.
Delhi Capitals
After a great start to their campaign in IPL 2025 with four consecutive wins, Delhi Capitals completely lost their momentum and failed to qualify for the playoffs despite being at the top of the points table at one point. One of the main reasons for DC’s failure in IPL 2025 was inconsistent performers from their batters throughout the season. Only KL Rahul turned out to be constant performer for DC amassing 539 runs from 13 matches at an average of 53.90. Now, if gets released by RR ahead of the auction Shimron Hetmyer can be a good pick for DC for IPL 2026. Hetmyer has also played for DC earlier in IPL 2020 and 2021 respectively.
Also Read: 3 Teams that can target David Miller for IPL 2026 auction if LSG release him
