237.55 Cr, 77 slots: All the numbers you need to know ahead of IPL 2026 Auction

In less than a few hours’ time, Abu Dhabi will play host to the battle of paddles as part of the IPL 2026 player auction. With a handful of big names in the mix, one can expect this to be an interesting battle of dynamics and strategies between the 10 franchises who will aim to construct the best team they can ahead of the season.

The significant monikers that will be lighting up the auction room in Abu Dhabi include the likes of Cameron Green, Matheesha Pathirana, David Miller, Liam Livingstone and Jamie Smith. Apart from the overseas firepower, a handful of Indian names will also be doing the rounds featuring the likes of Venkatesh Iyer, Rahul Tripathi, Sarfaraz Khan, Prithvi Shaw, Deepak Hooda, Ravi Bishnoi and Akash Deep among others.

The mini-auction will witness 359 players going under the gavel, split as 246 Indian players and 113 overseas talents, including a total of 114 capped players with INR 237.55 Cr available across 10 franchises. As defending champions, Royal Challengers Bengaluru - having retained 17 players from the title-winning squad - will be going into the auction with a purse of INR 16.40 crore and eight slots to fill, two of which can be used to sign overseas stars.

KKR have the biggest purse amount to spend at INR 64.30 crore, while the Mumbai Indians will have only INR 2.75 Crore to sign a few players. CSK will be coming in with a purse of INR 43.40, with Sunrisers Hyderabad (INR 25.5 Cr), Lucknow Super Giants (22.95 Cr) and Delhi Capitals (INR 21.8 Cr) rounding off the list of franchises who have 20+ Cr to spend.

Rajasthan Royals (INR 16.5 Cr), Gujarat Titans (INR 12.9 Cr) and Punjab Kings (INR 11.5 Cr) go into the auction with 9, 5 and 6 slots to fill respectively.

RCB’s current squad ahead of the auction: Rajat Patidar (C), Virat Kohli, Josh Hazlewood, Phil Salt, Jitesh Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rasikh Salam Dar, Krunal Pandya, Yash Dayal, Tim David, Suyash Sharma, Jacob Bethell, Devdutt Padikkal, Nuwan Thushara, Romario Shepherd, Swapnil Singh and Abhinandan Singh.