IPL 2026 Auction — All You Need to Know Before December 16. The IPL 2026 mini-auction, scheduled for December 16, is already being considered one of the most exciting auction days of the last few years. The franchises will enter the auction room in Abu Dhabi knowing that every single bid could be a game-changer for the season. There are only 77 available slots for the 350 players who have been shortlisted.
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Purse Remaining
The main factor that drew attention before the auction was the big difference in the amount of money that was available to the different franchises:
- Kolkata Knight Riders (₹64.3 Cr, 13 slots)
- Chennai Super Kings (₹43.4 Cr, 9 slots)
- Sunrisers Hyderabad (₹25.5 Cr, 10 slots)
- Lucknow Super Giants (₹22.95 Cr, 6 slots)
- Delhi Capitals (₹21.8 Cr, 8 slots)
- RCB (₹16.4 Cr, 8 slots)
- Rajasthan Royals (₹16.05 Cr, 9 slots)
- Gujarat Titans (₹12.9 Cr, 5 slots)
- Punjab Kings (₹11.5 Cr, 4 slots)
- Mumbai Indians (₹2.75 Cr, 5 slots)
KKR and CSK, with almost ₹60+ crore more than some of their rivals, will determine the pace of the auction.
₹2 Crore Base Price Club
A whopping 40 players have been assigned a ₹2 crore base price, and most of them are overseas stars. Only two Indian players — Venkatesh Iyer and Ravi Bishnoi — are at this high level, which shows the premium placed on them.
Notable ₹2 Cr players are: Cameron Green, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Devon Conway, David Miller, Steve Smith, Liam Livingstone, Rachin Ravindra, Wanindu Hasaranga, Kagiso Rabada (Coetzee), Anrich Nortje, Matheesha Pathirana, Mustafizur Rahman, Lungi Ngidi, Alzarri Joseph, Marco Jansen, Finn Allen, Sam Curran, Jason Holder, Mitchell Santner, Akeal Hosein, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Theekshana, Shamsi, Wiese, and many more.
Auction Sets to Watch
SET 1 – Big Batters & All-Round Firepower
Conway, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Cameron Green, Sarfaraz Khan, David Miller, Prithvi Shaw
SET 2 – Match Winners Across Formats
Atkinson, Hasaranga, Deepak Hooda, Venkatesh Iyer, Livingstone, Mulder, Rachin Ravindra
SET 3 – Wicketkeepers’ Goldmine
Finn Allen, Jonny Bairstow, KS Bharat, Quinton de Kock, Ben Duckett, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Jamie Smith
SET 4 – Fast-Bowling Arsenal
Coetzee, Akash Deep, Duffy, Farooqi, Matt Henry, Spencer Johnson, Shivam Mavi, Nortje, Pathirana
SET 5 – Spin & Control
Ravi Bishnoi, Rahul Chahar, Akeal Hosein, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Maheesh Theekshana
Late Twist: De Kock’s Surprise Entry
One of the most discussed topics in the late-auction scenario is Quinton de Kock’s entry at a ₹1 crore base price, which came just after he made a stunning ODI century against India. The IPL 2026 might see this as the best buy because teams are deprived of good-quality wicketkeeper-openers.
Domestic Uncapped Players to Watch
While stars dominate headlines, franchises will also hunt for value picks among Indian uncapped talent: Kartik Sharma, Prashant Veer, Sahil Parakh, Tushar Raheja, Ashok Sharma, Aquib Nabi, Shivam Shukla. These names could quietly shape squads in the lower price brackets.
Streaming Details
Television: Star Sports Network
Streaming online: JioStar
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December 16 in Abu Dhabi, from the presence of superstars to the stealthy purchases, is going to be nothing but a mess of calculations, and the cash will be flying across the table. The IPL 2026 does not take place on the field — it is the auctioneer’s hammer that marks the beginning.