The IPL player auction ahead of the 2024 season is likely to be held on December 19 in Dubai; it is the first time the auction will be held overseas.
The event will coincide with the second ODI of India’s tour of South Africa, which is scheduled for December 19 in Gqeberha.
The ten IPL teams have until November 15 to submit the lists of players they are retaining and releasing, after which the auction pool will be finalised by early December.
Each team will have a purse of INR 100 crore (USD 12.02 million approximately) to build their squad for the 2024 season, a INR 5 crore increase from last season’s purse of INR 95 crore. How much each team has to spend on auction day depends on the value of players they release, in addition to their unspent purse from the 2023 auction.
Punjab Kings have the largest purse at present – INR 12.20 crore (USD 1.47million) – while Mumbai Indians have the smallest at INR 0.05 crore (USD 0.006 million). Of the remaining teams Sunrisers Hyderabad have INR 6.55 crore (USD 0.79 million); Gujarat Titans and Delhi Capitals both have INR 4.45 crore (USD 0.54 million); Lucknow Super Giants have INR 3.55 crore (USD 0.43 million); Rajasthan Royals have USD 3.35 crore (USD 0.40 million); Royal Challengers Bangalore have INR 1.75 crore (USD 0.21 million); Kolkata Knight Riders have INR 1.65 crore (USD 0.2 million); and defending champions Chennai Super Kings have INR 1.5 crore (USD 0.18 million).
Despite being only a day-long event – compared to the two-day mega auction once every four years – mini auctions have produced some of the most expensive buys, especially in the overseas players category. Ahead of the 2023 season, Sam Curran became the most expensive player in IPL history when he was bought by Punjab for INR 18.5 crore in December last year.
Several prominent overseas players are likely to enter the upcoming auction, including Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc who recently said he was “definitely” heading back to the IPL after an eight-year hiatus. Pat Cummins is also likely to put his name up for bidding, having skipped the IPL last year. Some of the other key players franchises expect to see at the auction are Travis Head, Chris Woakes, Alex Hales, Sam Billings, and Gerald Coetzee.
Nagraj Gollapudi is news editor at ESPNcricinfo
Source: ESPN Crickinfo