IPL 2025 Auction kicks off today: Sri Lanka’s Hasaranga and Theekshana in highest bracket

The IPL 2025 auction is all set to take place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on November 24 and 25 as the 10 teams look to fill the remaining slots in their squads ahead of the new season. 

The changed rules before the mega auction allowed teams to retain as many as 6 players or go with 5 players and use the right to match (RTM) on the one they would like to bring back from the auction. All the 10 franchisees are set to spend a total of Rs 641.5 crore during the IPL 2025 Mega auction.

Five teams ended up releasing their captains with big names like Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer heading into the auction pool. There will be a lot of big and proven players who will be up for grabs as the 10 franchises get ready to set themselves up for the next 3 seasons at least.

While Punjab Kings will enter the IPL 2025 mega auction with maximum purse and 23 slots to make up a squad, Rajasthan Royals have the lowest remaining purse with 19 slots, including 7 Overseas slots, to fill.

How many players will be sold at the auction?

1577 players registered for the mega auction. However, the player pool has been reduced to 577, with 367 Indian players and 210 overseas players. The 10 teams collectively have 204 available slots to fill, including 70 spots for overseas players.

Out of the 574 Players, 366 are Indian and 208 are overseas, including 3 players from associate nations. The Auction will include 318 Indian uncapped players and 12 uncapped overseas players.

19 Sri Lankans have also shortlisted their names for the Player Auction with Sri Lankan spin twins – Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana opting to be in the highest bracket – INR 2 Crore.

The other shortlisted Sri Lankan players include: Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, Kusal Mendis, Kusal Perera, Nuwan Thushara, Jeffrey Vandersay, Pathum Nissanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Kamindu Mendis, Dushmantha Chameera, Charith Asalanka, Dunith Wellalage, Dilshan Madushanka, Dushan Hemantha, Dasun Shanaka, Lahiru Kumara, Eshan Malinga and Dumindu Sewmina.

Fast bowlers in high demand
 
Fast bowlers, both Indian and overseas, are set to dominate the auction. Batters, on the other hand, may see less excitement, as most marquee Indian players—except for Pant, Shreyas Iyer, and KL Rahul—are already retained. These three are also prime candidates for captaincy roles, with franchises like RCB, Kolkata Knight Riders, Lucknow Super Giants, and Punjab Kings seeking leaders.

--With agencies inputs