In an official confirmation from the governing council of Indian Premier League, it became evident that the player auction will take place in Bengaluru on Monday, February 20th. The official confirmation comes after some rumors suggesting that the venue might get shifted to Mumbai instead of Bengaluru citing logistical convenience.
An official BCCI Release, stated that 8 franchise will have a total of INR 143.3 Crores to bid on players. There have been a total of 750 registrations for the auction, teh deadline for the registration ends on Friday, February 3rd. Each of the 8 teams can have a total of 27 players including 9 overseas players. In the auction, there will be a total of 76 players auctioned including 28 overseas players.
The event, which will take place at Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Bengaluru, will see the city hosting players auction for the fourth consecutive time.
Among the eight IPL franchises, Kings XI Punjab has the biggest wallet amount remaining and that is worth INR 23.35 Crores. Delhi Daredavils are close 2nd with INR 21.1 Crores in the purse. Pune Super Giants have INR 17.5 Crores whereas another new team Gujarat Lions are left with INR 14.35 Crores. The list is followed by RCB who have INR 12.825 crores and the least amount remaining is with Mumbai Indians, INR 11.555 Crores.
Kolkata Knight Riders have just 14 players in their kitty at the moment and they are expected to close some good deals in the auction.
Ahead of the auctions, some big names including Dale Steyn, Kevin Pietersen and Ishant Sharma were released by their respective franchises. Kevin Pietersen has ruled himself out of the auction, citing a busy schedule.
A total of 140 crickets were retained by 8 franchises which included 44 overseas players. The total number of players released by all the franchises was 63.