IPL auction purchases highlight more liberalized selection process

The frenzy of the IPL auction in Jeddah has come to an end, leaving a trail of big spending and high expectations in its wake. Now that the dust has settled and the money has been splurged, it's time to take a step back and analyze what transpired. The IPL auction is a battleground where players' values fluctuate like stocks in a volatile market. Some strike it lucky with high bids, while others find themselves on the wrong end of the paddle, left to ponder their worth.

This time there were some amazing – perhaps bizarre – buys. Seriously, Venkatesh Iyer at ₹23.75 crore? Nobody, absolutely nobody, is worth that much. At that price you’d expect the player to win 4-5 games, but that never happens.

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transform: rotate(32deg); animation: shinerMooving 3s infinite; z-index: 1; filter: blur(1px); } @keyframes shinerMooving { 0% { left: -40px; } 100% { left: 150%; } } Top 15 buys at IPL 2025 Auction Rishabh Pant ₹ 27 Cr DC LSG Total Match 111 Total Runs 3284 Highest Score 128 runs Shreyas Iyer ₹ 26.75 Cr KKR PBKS Total Match 115 Total Runs 3127 Highest Score 96 runs Venkatesh Iyer ₹ 23.75 Cr KKR KKR Total Match 50 Total Runs 1326 Highest Score 104 runs Wickets 3 Best Bowling 2/29 Arshdeep Singh ₹ 18 Cr PBKS PBKS Total Match 65 Total Runs 29 Highest Score 10 runs Wickets 76 Best Bowling 5/32 Yuzvendra Chahal ₹ 18 Cr RR PBKS Total Match 260 Total Runs 37 Highest Score 8 runs Wickets 205 Best Bowling 5/40 Jos Buttler ₹ 15.75 Cr RR GT Total Match 107 Total Runs 3582 Highest Score 124 runs KL Rahul ₹ 14 Cr LSG DC Total Match 132 Total Runs 4683 Highest Score 132 runs Trent Boult ₹ 12.50 Cr RR MI Total Match 104 Total Runs 83 Highest Score 17 runs Wickets 121 Best Bowling 4/18 Jofra Archer ₹ 12.50 Cr MI RR Total Match 35 Total Runs 195 Highest Score 27 runs Wickets 46 Best Bowling 3/15 Josh Hazlewood ₹ 12.50 Cr RCB RCB Total Match 12 Total Runs - Highest Score - Wickets 12 Best Bowling 3/24 Mohammed Siraj ₹ 12.25 Cr RCB GT Total Match 93 Total Runs 109 Highest Score 14 runs Wickets 93 Best Bowling 4/21 Mitchell Starc ₹ 11.75 Cr KKR DC Total Match 41 Total Runs 105 Highest Score 29 runs Wickets 51 Best Bowling 4/15 Phil Salt ₹ 11.50 Cr DC RCB Total Match 21 Total Runs 653 Highest Score 89 runs Ishan Kishan ₹ 11.25 Cr MI SRH Total Match 105 Total Runs 2644 Highest Score 99 runs Wickets - Best Bowling - Jitesh Sharma ₹ 11 Cr PBKS RCB Total Match 40 Total Runs 730 Highest Score 49 runs Check Full Coverage

Deciding player price is a complex art, essentially an interplay of demand-supply plus desperation on the part of the buyer. LSG wanted Rishabh Pant badly so they stretched and stretched their budget to pay the highest ever IPL salary.

Sometimes, it’s an emotional call to stay with players who were with you in the past. CSK and MI are high on ‘family’ but even with them the emotional card plays out in an uneven way. When Deepak Chahar moved to MI, his wife Jaya Bhardwaj thanked CSK for the wonderful years spent in yellow.

KKR bought back its core but rejected Nitish Rana. This snub provoked Nitish’s wife to put out a post on social media dripping with acid: Loyalty is expensive, not everyone can afford it.

In a market driven system emotion can only have limited currency. Delhi wanted Rishabh (with them the previous six years) but the numbers didn’t work and economics trumped emotion.

Sport is brutal in the sense that few succeed and the majority confront a fate that guarantees failure. The IPL auction raises the bar of cruelty and disappointment higher because thousands sign up, not many make it to the table and less than 250 are finally picked.

For a moment put aside who made it or lost out, or how each team is stacked post Jeddah. Instead, look at the larger picture from the auction.

The loudest message is IPL is an advert for Made In India. As BCCI’s domestic tournament, IPL firmly places Indian cricketers in the centre and foreign talent revolves around it. Top Indian talent received top money whereas generally the foreign players (Starc, Miller, Maxwell, Sam Curran, Du Plessis, Tim David) took a huge salary cut.

Over the years, the power structure in IPL has clearly moved towards India, a trend reflected in teams appointing Indian captains/coaches/mentors/support staff. In the auction too this shift was visible with teams showing no interest in Warner, Steve Smith, Williamson.

In comparison, the Indian lot had reason to smile, especially bowlers who scored big. Still, some unfortunate ones missed out, prominent among them being Sarfaraz Khan, Mayank Agrawal, Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav. Rahane and Padikkal just about scraped through, as did Ishant Sharma. No such joy for Prithvi Shaw.

The most profound message from the auction is cricket’s traditional selection policy has gone for a toss. Till now selection was done by a few selectors but now the method of spotting talent and picking teams is liberalised, more democratic and open. Each IPL team has spotters/scouts/data analysts who track players and assess their skills while putting together a squad of 25 equipped to perform in different conditions.

With teams reaching out to hunt talent, it is easier for a relatively unknown player to break through and get on the big stage. Once there, a few good knocks (examples: Ashutosh Sharma, Ashutosh Singh, Shashank Singh, Ayush Badoni, Nitish Reddy) or a few good spells (Mayank Yadav) can fast track the careers of players. Gone are the days of slogging in 4-day Ranji games to catch the attention of selectors. Now, if you are good someone will find you.

In terms of team selection and talent search, IPL is the moment where doors opened and only talent matters, age is not an issue. IPL embraces Vaibhav Suryavanshi, 13, Faf, 40, and Dhoni who at 44 is the senior statesman.

The auction also highlights the gains from state premier leagues. Priyansh Arya and Vansh Bedi hit their way into IPL through DPL, the same with Swastik Chikara and Samir Rizvi in UP. Vignesh Puthur, left-arm wrist spinner from Kerala and Tamil Nadu quick Gurjapneet Singh are also products of state leagues. Naman Dhir, coming from a humble background, struggled in Sangrur, Punjab cricket’s backwaters, but he fought his way to a life changing ₹5.2 crore contract in IPL.

Such success stories keep alive the dreams of millions of youngsters. IPL gives them hope of making it to a dazzling life of fame and riches.

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