The Indian Premier League 2026 is set to be held in Abu Dhabi on December 16, and the excitement is reaching fever pitch.
The retention window has been slammed shut, and its transfer time! More than 1000 players will go under the hammer as the teams will be looking to spend their purse pragmatically to find the ideal blend and balance between experience and youth.
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The IPL auctions were previously held in Dubai (2023) and Jeddah (2024), and the BCCI has now chosen the capital of the UAE to host the mini auction, where Bollywood glamour and cricketing heritage will come together in a heady mix at the Etihad Arena.
How many players have registered for the IPL auction?
A whopping 1355 players have made themselves available for auction for the 2026 edition of the domestic tournament. All the franchises have locked in their retentions and will look to fill in the rest of the squad. Each team can have a maximum of 25 players in their roster.
The 1355 players will be vying for 77 slots to be filled. Out of the 77, overseas players will be fighting for 31 spots.
However, all 1355 players will not be called during the action and only the shortlisted ones, a list that will be sent to the BCCI by each franchise, will be auctioned.
IPL 2026 Mini Auction Date and Venue
The IPL 2026 mini-auction will be held on December 16, 2025, in Abu Dhabi, marking the third consecutive year the event takes place outside India.
Phase | Description | Timeline / Notes |
Pre-Auction Trade Window | Player swaps and cash deals to rebalance squads | Open now and closes approximately 1 week before the auction |
Mini-Auction | Teams fill gaps left after trades | December 16, 2025, in Abu Dhabi |
Post-Auction Trade Window | Final squad adjustments and tune-ups | Opens after the auction and closes approximately 1 month before IPL 2026 |
Details of players at the maximum reserve price
Forty-six players, including Cameron Green, Liam Livingstone, Venkatesh Iyer and Matheesha Pathirana, have been listed at the maximum reserve price of ₹ 2 crore in the auction.
Kolkata Knight Riders (₹ 64.3 crore) and Chennai Super Kings (₹ 43.4 crore) are going to go big as they have the maximum amount left in the purse. KKR have released nine players, including Iyer and must pick up 12 players, including six foreign candidates.
KKR will be among the favourites to go all guns blazing for Green after they released Andre Russell. CSK might swoop in for Pathirana again, and might even use the RTM (Right to Match) Card.
Base Price of 2 crore: Ravi Bishnoi, Venkatesh Iyer, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Naveen ul Haq, Sean Abott, Ashton Agar, Cooper Connolly, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Cameron Green, Josh Inglis, Steve Smith, Mustafizur Rahman, Gus Atkinson, Tom Banton, Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, Ben Duckett, Dan Lawrence, Liam Livingstone, Tymal Mills, Jamie Smith, Finn Allen, Michael Bracewell, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Adam Milne, Daryll Mitchell, Will O'Rourke, Rachin Ravindra, Gerald Coetzee, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Rilee Roussouw, Tabraiz Shamsi, David Wiese, Wanindu Hasaranga, Mateesha Pathirana, Maheesh Theekshana, Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph
What is the salary cap of each IPL franchise?
For the IPL 2026 season, the auction purse has been increased to ₹151 crore per franchise, allowing for bigger team investments than previous years.
The overall salary structure now includes the auction purse, incremental performance pay, and for the first time, an additional match fee of ₹7.5 lakh per player per game.
Related links:
- Virat Kohli IPL 2026 team, salary: Will the former India captain retire or look for a transfer?
- IPL 2026 Auction: Date, Players List, Rules & Mini-Auction Preview
- All the latest cricket news