The mega auction of IPL 2025 will be held on November 24 (today) and 25 (tomorrow). The event will be held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. There are 577 players in the auction, although only 204 players are available in 10 teams. Big names like Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul and Glenn Maxwell will also enter the auction, for which the team could spend Rs 20-30 crore.
Australia's Mitchell Starc was the most expensive in the last auction. He was bought by Kolkata for Rs 24.75 crore. Stark will also be in the auction this time. Along with that, bowlers like Arshdeep Singh, Sam Karan and Mohammed Shami can also get a bid of Rs 15 to 20 crores.
Never in a mega auction
16 crore bids were not received
The most expensive players in the history of IPL came in the mini auction itself. There have been 5 mega auctions in the history of the tournament and bids have never touched Rs 16 crore. Ishan Kishan was bought in 2022 for Rs 15.25 crore and Gautam Gambhir in 2011 for Rs 14.9 crore. Both are the most expensive players in the mega auction. Apart from this, the highest bids in the remaining 3 mega auctions reached only Rs 12 and 14 crores.
Top-5 players, who can become superstars in the mega auction…
1. Rishabh Pant: Can break the 30 crore barrier
- Former Delhi Capitals captain Rishabh is a wicketkeeper batsman. Last season the team won 7 matches, but could not reach the playoffs.
- Scored 446 runs at a strike rate of over 155 in 13 matches of the 2024 IPL. Has scored more than 3 thousand runs in his career. He also has a century to his name.
- 5 teams need a captain and four need a wicketkeeper. Pant will fulfill the needs of this team and can also captain.
- Teams from Punjab and Bengaluru will enter the auction with the biggest purses. The bidding war for Pant in both the teams could reach Rs 30 crore.
2. Arshdeep Singh: Could be the most expensive bowler
- Team India's left arm fast bowler Arshdeep Singh was released by Punjab Kings. Along with swinging the new ball, he also bowls yorkers in the death overs.
- Last season took 19 wickets in 14 matches. Has taken 76 wickets in his career. It is not yet clear why Punjab released him.
- Arshdeep made his T20 debut for India in 2022, becoming the country's second top wicket-taker in 3 years. In the T-20 World Cup 2024, he took the most wickets of 17.
- He is in high demand due to his consistent performances in international cricket. Teams like Gujarat, Hyderabad, Bengaluru can spend up to 20 crore rupees for him.
3. Jos Buttler: Could be the most expensive foreigner
- England's white ball captain Jos Buttler is a wicketkeeper and has captaincy skills as well as opening. Rajasthan could not retain him.
- Buttler led England to the 2022 T20 World Cup under his captaincy. Under his leadership, the team also played the semi-finals of the 2024 World Cup.
- Buttler scored 359 runs in 11 matches with 2 centuries last season. He has 7 IPL centuries to his name and has also scored over 3500 runs.
- Buttler is the best option for a team looking for a foreign wicketkeeper batsman. The bidding war for this in Kolkata, Mumbai and Gujarat can cross Rs 15 crore.
4. Glenn Maxwell: Every time he entered the auction, he fetched a higher price
- Glenn Maxwell is an off-spin all-rounder and is known for his hard batting. A team can win matches on its own.
- Last season, Maxwell managed to score just 52 runs in 10 matches before being released by RCB. He is close to 3000 runs in his career, scoring these runs at a strike rate of over 156.
- Each auction saw bids of over 5 crores on Maxwell. Mumbai bought him for Rs 5.32 crore in 2013, Punjab bought him for Rs 6 crore in 2014, Delhi bought him for Rs 9 crore in 2018, Punjab bought him for Rs 10.75 crore in 2020 and Bengaluru bought him for Rs 14.75 crore in 2021.
- All IPL teams need foreign batting all-rounders. Maxwell is a big name, so the team can easily spend Rs 15 to 20 crore on him.
5. KL Rahul: Mumbai-Gujarat can rain crores
- KL Rahul, who has captained Lucknow and Punjab, is the wicketkeeper-opener. Pant and Buttler have similar skills. Rahul could not take Lucknow to the playoffs last season, so the team released him.
- Rahul scored 520 runs in 14 matches last season, he has 4 centuries in his IPL career. He is close to 5 thousand runs and also bats explosively.
- Rahul has also scored 2 centuries in T-20 Internationals. He is currently out of the T20 squad due to his focus on the Test and ODI formats, but Rahul could be a smart selection for any IPL team.
- Teams like Mumbai, Gujarat, Bengaluru and Delhi are interested in buying Rahul. If there is a bidding war, the amount can easily cross Rs 20 crore.
Shreyas-Stark may surprise at the auction
Shreyas Iyer: Kolkata became champions for 10 years under the captaincy
- Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders have released captain Shreyas Iyer. He has also taken Delhi to the playoffs under his captaincy. He is a middle order batter.
- Last season, Shreyas scored 351 runs in 14 matches at a strike rate of over 146. He has scored more than 3 thousand runs in his career, with 21 fifties to his name.
- Shreyas was bought by Kolkata for Rs 12.25 crore in the last mega auction. It would be a very smart choice if any team buys him for less than Rs 7 crore.
- There are 5 teams in the auction that need a captain. Punjab, Delhi and Bengaluru have saved big for a player like Shreyas.
Mitchell Starc: The most expensive player in IPL history
- Mitchell Starc, who became the most expensive player in IPL history in the last mini-auction, could be bid for once again. He was bought by Kolkata for Rs 24.75 crore last season.
- Starc took 17 wickets in 13 matches last season. He was instrumental in making Kolkata champions, taking important wickets of the openers in both the playoff matches.
- Starc has taken 51 wickets in 40 matches of his IPL career. In the last auction, Bengaluru and Gujarat also bid heavily for it. Both the teams can enter the field this time too.
- Starc is a yorker specialist and prevents the batsmen from scoring quick runs in the death overs. Due to these skills, his price may cross Rs 20 crore once again.
Graphics: Kunal Sharma
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
