 "IPL 2025 Auction: Analysing the budget, strategy and key player targets for all 10 franchises")
The mega auction for the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) is just around the corner, with 574 players set to go under the hammer across two days in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia starting Sunday. It will be the second consecutive IPL auction taking place overseas, with Dubai’s Coca Cola Arena having hosted the mini auction on 19 December last year, and will be the fifth mega auction in the history of the world’s biggest T20 league.
Also Read | IPL 2025 Auction: Players list analysis, expected highest bidders and more
A total of 204 spots, including 70 for overseas players, are left for the 10 franchises to fill in the upcoming auction after they had unveiled their retention lists on the 31 October deadline set by the IPL Governing Council.
Before auctioneer Mallika Sagar picks the first bail, which will be from the list of 12 ‘Marquee’ players that includes the likes of Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul, on Sunday, we take a look the purse and Right to Match slots remaining for the 10 franchises and their key auction strategy:
**Kolkata Knight Riders**Purse remaining: Rs 51 crore; RTM slots: 0
Defending champions KKR used up all of their available retention slots, retaining West Indian seniors Andre Russell and Sunil Narine but leaving out captain Shreyas Iyer, and will be hoping to buy back as many members of their title-winning 2024 squad in the mega auction as possible. They will also be looking for a wicket-keeper after releasing both Phil Salt and Rahmanullah Gurbaz, and will also need one or two overseas all-rounders to cover for ‘Dre Russ’.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsPurse remaining: Rs 55 crore; RTM slots: 1 (capped/uncapped)
Five-time champions decided to retain MS Dhoni, that too as an ‘uncapped player’ thanks to the return of an old IPL rule, despite concerns around his age and his fitness. They have also opted to retain Ravindra Jadeja along with captain Ruturaj Gaikwad, seam-bowling all-rounder Shivam Dube and Sri Lankan pacer Matheesha Pathirana, and are likely to target getting Rachin Ravindra back into their fold in the mega auction. Rishabh Pant, who had been released by Delhi Capitals, has also been linked to the ‘Yellow Army’.
Purse remaining: Rs 55 crore; RTM slots: 1 (uncapped)
MI, who have also won the IPL five times, opted to retain Rohit Sharma despite reports suggesting the ‘Hitman’ had already made his final appearance in the blue-and-gold jersey in the 2024 season, along with skipper Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav and rising star Tilak Varma. They might target Nehal Wadhera with their lone RTM card and are likely to strengthen their spin department by targeting someone like Yuzvendra Chahal after his release from Rajasthan Royals. MI might also be looking to bring Quinton de Kock back into their fold as they will be looking for a wicketkeeper after releasing Ishan Kishan, that is unless they buy him back like they did in 2022.
**Rajasthan Royals**Purse remaining: Rs 41 crore; RTM slots: 0 (capped/uncapped)
RR, like defending champions KKR, have exhausted all of their retention slots and are left with no RTM cards after retaining captain Sanju Samson as well as other core players such as Yashasvi Jaiswal and Riyan Parag. Versatile all-rounders such as Rachin Ravindra and Moeen Ali could be their key targets in the mega auction. However, buying back in-demand players such as Jos Buttler and Yuzvendra Chahal could prove tricky given the limited auction purse that they have.
Purse remaining: Rs 45 crore; RTM slots: 1 (uncapped)
SRH opted to retain the core group that starred in their run to last year’s final, including Heinrich Klaasen who is the most expensive retention at Rs 23 crore along with captain Pat Cummins, whose arrival in the ‘Orange Army’ has revived their fortunes. They are left with one uncapped RTM slot, for which Abdul Samad would be a top candidate, and could look to buy former captain Aiden Markram at a cheaper price in the auction, or further bolster their middle order by acquiring David Miller or Rovman Powell. Bhuvneshwar Kumar and T Natarajan are likely to be their top pace targets, with the former having been with the franchise for a decade now.
**Gujarat Titans**Purse remaining: Rs 69 crore; RTM slots: 1 (capped)
Retaining Rashid Khan and skipper Shubman Gill were top priorities for the 2022 champions on retention deadline and they also decided to go with the uncapped pair of Rahul Tewatia and M Shahrukh Khan. With an auction purse of Rs 69 crore and one capped RTM slot in their kitty, the Titans might look to use it to retain Mohammed Shami, who recently made a comeback from a year-long absence due to an ankle injury and looks solid as ever. They could also look to target a wicketkeeper like Josh Inglis and Rahmanullah Gurbaz.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Purse remaining: Rs 83 crore; RTM slots: 3 (capped/uncapped)
RCB have the second-biggest purse after PBKS after retaining just three players from their squad, including star batter and former captain Virat Kohli for Rs 21 crore, and could use one of their RTM cards to retain Mohammed Siraj, who has been included in the ‘Marquee’ players list for the upcoming auction. KL Rahul has also been heavily linked to RCB, his former franchise, after he was released by Lucknow Super Giants, and he could end up captaining the side after Faf du Plessis was released back into the auction pool.
**Delhi Capitals**Purse remaining: Rs 73 crore; RTM slots: 2 (capped/uncapped)
DC, who had finished runners-up in 2020, made headlines after releasing captain and wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant, who had been with the franchise since 2016, retaining Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav along with Tristan Stubbs and Abhishek Porel. They will be looking for a captain in the auction and Shreyas Iyer, who had led them to their only appearance in a final four years ago, could be a priority. With a fairly large auction purse of Rs 73 crore, the Capitals might also target Jos Buttler after his release from RR, with the England white-ball captain also potentially succeeding Pant as keeper-captain. They will also be looking to build their pace department and could be targeting Kagiso Rabada, who led their attack back when Iyer was captain.
Purse remaining: Rs 110.5 crore; RTM slots: 4 (capped)
PBKS have opted for a complete overhaul not just in their coaching staff but also in their squad, releasing the entire squad with the exception of the uncapped pair of Shashank Singh and Prabhsimran Singh, leaving them with the largest auction purse of Rs 110.5 crore along with four capped RTM targets. Punjab of course will have to build a squad from scratch but using their RTM cards for top players such as Arshdeep Singh and Liam Livingstone and targeting Rishabh Pant for the captaincy slot could be their top priorities in the mega auction.
**Lucknow Super Giants**Purse remaining: Rs 69 crore; RTM slots: 1 (capped)
LSG will be looking for a captain after parting ways with KL Rahul on retention day, unless that role goes for explosive West Indian wicketkeeper-batter Nicholas Pooran who happens to be their top retention at Rs 21 crore. Lucknow have 1 capped RTM slot available and might use it on Australian all-rounder Marcus Stoinis, who was a surprise exclusion from their retention list given his impact in the middle order as well as with his seam bowling. Nitish Rana could also be a valuable buy for the franchise when it comes to capped Indian batters.
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