IPL Mega Auction 2025: LSG bag Pant for record Rs 27 cr; Punjab secure Iyer for Rs 26.75 cr
The auction in Jeddah features 577 players with a total purse of Rs 641.5 cr.
The auction in Jeddah features 577 players with a total purse of Rs 641.5 cr.
The auction in Jeddah features 577 players with a total purse of Rs 641.5 cr.
The IPL mega auction 2025 with the availability of 577 players going under the hammer is underway in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Within minutes of a record Rs 26.75 crore bid from Punjab Kings for Shreyas Iyer in the first round of marquee player auction, Rishabh Pant broke the IPL record again. Lucknow Super Giants secured the prized asset for a massive Rs 27 crore.
The much-awaited bidding war for Pant began with the Lucknow Supergiants and RCB going aggressive. Surprisingly, RCB pulled out shortly after the price went past Rs 10 crore. But LSG went further after Sunrisers Hyderabad upped the game with a Rs 20-cr bid. Delhi Capitals used their 'RTM' card after LSG bid for Rs 20.75 crore, but they pulled out after seeing the final bid.
Earlier, Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals got aggressive for 'captain material' Iyer as he became the first player on the day to breach the Rs 20 crore-mark.
Punjab matched the IPL auction record of Rs 24.75 crore KKR shelled out for Aussie pacer Mitchell Starc ahead of IPL 2024. But the Delhi franchise had no choice but to create history with a Rs 25 crore bid. The battle still went on and it was Punjab who bagged the talented Iyer for a record price of Rs 26.75 crore.
Sunrisers Hyderabad successfully bid for India pacer Mohammad Shami at Rs 10 crore. After taking home India's finest left-hand prospect (Pant), LSG bagged South African leftie David Miller for Rs 7.50 crore.
All-rounder Liam Livingstone became Royal Challengers Bengaluru's first pick from the auction. They spent Rs 8.75 crore for the Englishman. Delhi Capitals will have an Aussie pace spearhead next season as they managed to win the services of Mitchell Starc for Rs 11.75 crore. K L Rahul was expected to join Iyer and Pant in the Rs 20-crore-club, but bidding for the wicketkeeper batter ended at Rs 14 crore with Delhi Capitals securing his services.
Left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh was the first player to go under the hammer. Punjab Kings took back the India international using their 'Right To Match' card for Rs 18 crore after a thrilling opening bid involving six franchises, with Sunrisers Hyderabad going almost all the way till the end. With a hefty purse at their disposal, Punjab Kings were determined to go after leg spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and they claimed his services at Rs 18 crore.
Gujarat Titans secured the services of swashbuckling Englishman Jos Buttler for Rs 15.75 crore. Rajasthan Royals, who chose to let him go, were out of the bidding race at Rs 10 crore. Earlier the Titans successfully bid for South African pacer Kagiso Rabada for Rs 10.75 crore. Punjab Kings, who let go the right-arm pacer, chose not to use the RTM card. Gujarat also added Indian pacer Mohammed Siraj to their ranks with a bid of Rs 12.25 crore.
Total players and purse
The ten franchises in the Indian Premier League (IPL) will have 367 Indians and 210 overseas players available to pick from.
The total purse available for the franchises is 641.5 crore, with 204 slots open. Punjab Kings have the most to spend (Rs 110.5 crore) after they chose to go soft in the IPL player retention. Rajasthan Royals have the lowest purse of Rs 41 crore as they chose to exhaust all six of their retentions, with skipper Sanju Samson leading the pack.
Franchises will also want to use their 'Right To Match' (RTM) cards wisely should any of the players they let go in the retentions come up for bidding.
The first set of marquee players (Rs 2 crore base price) includes Jos Buttler, Rishabh Pant, Arshdeep Singh, Mitchell Starc, Shreyas Iyer and Kagiso Rabada.
The set 2 (Rs 2 crore base price) will feature Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohammad Shami, Liam Livingstone, K L Rahul, Mohammed Siraj and David Miller (Rs 1.5 cr).