It has not even been six months since we saw the Knight Riders from Kolkata lift the elusive IPL 2024 trophy, and the hype for the IPL 2025 season has already started to build up. The major reason for this buzz and excitement is the IPL 2025 mega auction, which is going to be conducted before the IPL 2025 season. We will see a lot of shuffling between the teams to create a level playing field for all ten franchises.
BCCI has released the most-awaited guidelines for the IPL auction 2025, and there is a lot of exciting information regarding the auction dynamics. We are here to walk you through all the stuff, starting with the rules and regulations of the IPL mega auction 2025, the number of retentions available, the salary cap, and what could be the top retention preferences for all the franchises.
How many retentions are allowed?
Under the new rules and regulations about the IPL 2025 mega auction, each franchise can have a maximum of six retentions. There is no minimum limit, but if a franchise decides to release its whole squad, it will be in a lot of trouble before the auction as it will have to build the team from scratch.
These six allowed retentions can be completed via retaining the players or using the Right to Match (RTM) card, and there is no cap on the usage of either of the retention methods. A franchise can retain a maximum of five capped players, which includes both Indian and overseas players. A cap of two has been set by the IPL Governing Council on the retention of uncapped Indian players.
Another interesting rule introduced by the governing council is regarding the overseas players. Over the years, we have seen a lot of foreign players ditching their IPL teams at the very last minute, leaving them with no time to change their strategies. As a result, some new conditions have been set by the committee where huge penalties will be put on such players.
The first condition is that if an overseas player fails to register himself for the mega auction, he will be ineligible to register himself for the following year’s player auction. So, if an overseas player does not register himself for the 2025 auction, he will not be able to take part in the IPL 2026 player auction.
Another condition is that if an overseas player gets sold in the auction and makes himself unavailable at the last minute for the IPL season, he will not be able to be a part of the Indian Premier League for the next two years. These strict rules will help in regulating the problem of overseas players not coming to play at the last minute.
We feel that the number set by the committee for retention is good, as the franchises that had a good squad will have something to save from it, whereas the teams that want to change their structure will also have an opportunity to build a good squad. A lot of planning and plotting will be required by the ten IPL teams to announce these retentions before October 31, 2024, which is the deadline.
What are the changes in the salary cap of the players?
Some interesting revelations have been made by BCCI as far as the salary cap of the players is concerned. The most important announcement is that the players who are a part of the playing 11 (including the impact player) will receive a match fee of INR 7.5 lakhs per match from the franchise over and above their contracted amount. This will be a huge boost to the players’ confidence and commitment towards winning matches for their team.
The auction purse, which was INR 110 crores for the last season, has been increased to INR 120 crores this time around. The franchises will have the purse to make that extra bid for players they want in their team. A total of INR 146 crores will be the total salary cap for franchises, which will include auction purses, incremental performance pay, and match fees for the players.
The salary slabs for retaining the players set by the BCCI are as follows:
| Retained Player | Player Value |
| Player 1 | INR 18 crores |
| Player 2 | INR 14 crores |
| Player 3 | INR 11 crores |
| Player 4 | INR 18 crores |
| Player 5 | INR 14 crores |
| Uncapped Player(s) | INR 4 cores |
What is the new RTM rule?
By matching the amount at which the player is sold in the auction, the franchise can purchase a player who was on their roster the previous season with the RTM card. In past RTM card mega auctions, after a player was deemed sold, the auctioneer would enquire with the team to which the player had been assigned the previous season if they would like to purchase him back; if they would, they would be able to acquire the player for the sum of the winning price.
The franchise with the highest bid will have one more chance to raise its bid at the following auction, provided the prior franchise wishes to use the RTM card. To acquire the player in that scenario, the original team would have to use the RTM card to match that bid and avail the services of that player for the upcoming IPL season.
For example, Delhi Capitals decided to release Axar Patel, who went into the auction and was sold to Mumbai Indians for INR 11 crores. Now, the Delhi team will have an option to use the RTM card to keep Axar on their roster. Suppose the Delhi Capitals exercise their RTM card and decide to keep Axar Patel in their squad. Now, the Mumbai Indians will be given one more chance to increase their bid for Axar Patel, and if they do so, Delhi will have to match that bid with their RTM card; otherwise, the player will be sold to the Mumbai Indians.
How will a player be defined as uncapped or capped?
An Indian player who has played for the national team even once is known as a capped player. An uncapped player is someone who has yet to make his debut for the Indian national team and does not have a central contract with the BCCI.
However, from this year’s mega auction in the Indian Premier League, a capped Indian player will become uncapped if he has not played an international match (Test, ODI, T20I) in the last five years for the country preceding the year in which the relevant IPL season is held. The player will also become uncapped if he does not have a central contract with the BCCI.
This new rule amendment as per IPL News 2025 will allow the franchises to make a few smart decisions while cutting their costs.
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