IPL Trophy.
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The IPL 2026 auction is set to be held in Abu Dhabi on December 16 with a maximum of 77 slots to be filled among the 10 franchises.
The BCCI on Tuesday released a shortlist of 350 players who will feature in the mini auction. The list includes 240 Indian and 110 are overseas players. The pool comprises 224 uncapped Indian players and 14 uncapped overseas players.
The highest reserve price remains Rs 2 crore, with 40 players choosing to enter the auction in the bracket.
On the day of the retentions last month, there were a few surprises, with the biggest of them being Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) releasing their star allrounder Andre Russell. However, the West Indian announced his retirement from the tournament after a few days of being released.
Chennai Super Kings traded their star Ravindra Jadeja, along with England's Sam Curran to acquire Sanju Samson.
Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru released England batter Liam Livingstone, India star Mayank Agarwal and others. However, pacer Yash Dayal, who has been embroiled in major off-field controversies, was retained by RCB.
2025 runners-up Punjab Kings, who impressed everyone with their mind-blowing performance, also made some shocking releases. PBKS parted ways with all-rounder Glenn Maxwell, wicketkeeper-batter Josh Inglis, pacer Aaron Hardie, among others.
Mumbai Indians have retained their core group of players ahead of the IPL 2026 auctions, but released one of their rising stars from last season, Vignesh Puthur.
Before announcing their releases and retentions, MI traded in Sherfane Rutherford from the Gujarat Titans and Shardul Thakur from the Lucknow Super Giants to strengthen their squad. Then on Saturday morning, the Hardik Pandya-led franchise traded in Mayank Markande from Kolkata Knight Riders as the leg-spinner returned to his former franchise.
After the release of players, the 10 IPL teams have handsome purse remaining ahead of the upcoming mini auction, which will be held on December 16 in Abu Dhabi.
As the excitement for the auction build, here is the total available purse with each team.
Chennai Super Kings: Rs 43.5 crore
Chennai Super Kings had their worst season in 2025, finishing last. The franchise has opted for a major rejig. They released 12 players, while bringing in Sanju Samson via trade. They go into the auction with Rs 43.5 crore, which is the second highest in this year's auction, to fill nine slots, including four overseas players.
Rajasthan Royals: Rs 16.05 crore
Rajasthan Royals have let of off their captain Sanju Samson. The team has also released the Sri Lankan spin twins of Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana, while bringing in Ravindra Jadeja. The team has nine slots remaining to fill with Rs 16.05 crore and has only one foreign player spot available.
Kolkata Knight Riders: Rs 64.3 crore
KKR has the highest purse among the 10 teams at Rs 63.4 crore. They let go expensive buys like Venkatesh Iyer and Andre Russell to free up their purse. The team needs to fill 13 slots, including six overseas spots.
Lucknow Super Giants: 22.95 crore
LSG will enter the auction with Rs 22.95 crore and just six players to buy. They can also take in four overseas players. During the trade window, the franchise strengthened their pace department with Mohammed Shami and Arjun Tendulkar. The franchise released some big names like David Miller, Ravi Bishnoi and Akash Deep.
SunRisers Hyderabad: 25.5 crore
SRH had a disappointing season, finishing in the bottom half of the table after having finished runner-up in 2024 season. This year, the team has 10 slots to fill with Rs 25.5 crore. However, they have only two overseas slots remaining. Experienced pacer Mohammed Shami was traded to LSG.
Delhi Capitals: Rs 21.8 crore
DC started the season strongly but faltered in the second half to miss out on a spot in the playoffs in 2025. the franchise released openers Jake Fraser McGurk and veteran Faf du Plessis. The team will have Rs 21.8 crore at their disposal to fill eight spots, including five overseas slots.
Mumbai Indians: Rs 2.75 crore
MI is the team with the least purse in the auction at Rs 2.75 crore. With minimal released, the team has five spots to fill.
Gujarat Titans: Rs 12.9 crore
After having traded out Sharfane Rutherford, GT are left with Rs 12.9 crore to fill five slots out of which four are for overseas players.
Punjab Kings: Rs 11.5 crore
Previous season's defending champions are not eyeing for many changes as they have only four slots to fill with Rs 11.5 crore. Josh Inglis, who will not be available for the majority of the season, and Glenn Maxwell were the only notable releases.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Rs 16.4 crore
Defending champions RCB will have Rs 16.4 crore at their disposal. The franchise can fill up to eight slots, including two overseas players. The team released England all-rounder Liam Livingstone and Mayank Agarwal among others.