No decision has been reached by Sunrisers Hyderabad on whether to move England all-rounder Liam Livingstone before the IPL retention cut-off on November 17, 2026. Chennai Super Kings are among the franchises engaged in broader trade conversations that include the 33-year-old, and at least one other northern franchise has also registered interest in acquiring him.
Livingstone arrived at SRH via the 2026 IPL auction, where the franchise secured him for INR 13 crore. His season in Hyderabad fell well short of those expectations: deployed in the Impact Player role, he appeared in just two matches and contributed only 15 runs before being dropped from the playing XI entirely. A source familiar with the discussions said the following about the state of negotiations.
“The franchises are certainly discussing Livingstone and another player apart from Khaleel in CSK. Multiple players and multiple franchises are involved in the trade discussions, not just two, and nothing has been finalised,” the source said as quoted by Cricbuzz.
What players are involved in the trade discussions?
Coming into the retention window, CSK are reportedly open to including left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed as part of any exchange with Sunrisers Hyderabad. However, the credibility of specific player names beyond Khaleel remains unresolved, and no deal has been confirmed by either side. Veteran left-arm pacer T Natarajan has also been mentioned in the context of SRH’s recent trade activity, though the details of his involvement are unclear and have not been independently verified.
The Hardik Pandya trade is separately understood to be at an advanced stage involving multiple franchises, with Mumbai Indians not yet having finalised that deal either. The broader pattern points to a concentrated period of pre-retention movement across the league as the November 17 deadline approaches.
How did Livingstone end up at SRH and what is his IPL background?
Before joining Sunrisers, Livingstone had been part of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru setup following the previous mega auction cycle, where he was purchased for INR 8.75 crore. RCB subsequently released him, and the 2026 auction saw SRH invest significantly more to bring him on board at INR 13 crore, a figure that reflected the all-round value he was expected to provide.
That investment did not yield the returns SRH had anticipated. Across two outings in the 2026 season, Livingstone managed a combined 15 runs and was left out of the XI thereafter. With the retention deadline now less than two weeks away, Hyderabad must decide whether to hold, trade or release him before November 17, 2026.
