Forty-five players set maximum reserve price; teams have 77 slots to fill at the auction scheduled for December 16
Nagraj Gollapudi01-Dec-2025Cameron Green, Liam Livingstone, Ravi Bishnoi, Venkatesh Iyer, Matheesha Pathirana and Wanindu Hasaranga are among 45 players that have listed the maximum reserve price of INR 2 crore to participate in the 2026 IPL auction.One notable absentee from the longlist is Australian allrounder Glenn Maxwell, whom Punjab Kings last year bought for 4.2 crore, making them the fourth franchise of his IPL career. However Maxwell, who is 37, sustained a fractured finger midway through the 2025 season and was replaced by fellow Aussie allrounder Mitchell Owen, who has been retained by PBKS.England allrounder Moeen Ali, like Faf du Plessis, has opted to play in the Pakistan Super League instead of the IPL. Moeen has been part of eight IPL seasons since 2018 and has won two titles with CSK. Among the other absentees is Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) legend Andre Russell, who retired from the IPL after not being retained and has joined the team as a “power coach”.A total of 1,355 players feature in the long list of players, accessed by ESPNcricinfo, which the IPL shared with franchises on Monday after the registration deadline closed on November 30. With a maximum squad size of 25 per franchise, a total of 77 slots are available to be filled at the auction, including 31 overseas players.The list will be pruned by the IPL once they have received wishlists from all 10 franchises ahead of the day-long auction which will take place in Abu Dhabi on December 16. The IPL has set December 5 as the deadline for franchises to submit their shortlist.While Indian players with specialised skillsets will be in contention for big money, the central focus at the auction is set to be on Australia’s allrounder Green, who did not participate in the 2025 mega-auction as he was recovering from back injury. Interest is likely to come from KKR (64.3 crore) and Chennai Super Kings (43.4 crore), who have the strongest purses going into the auction, and both have a slot available for an overseas player.KKR could be counted as a favourite to vie for Green, following this weekend’s IPL retirement of West Indies’ T20 great Andre Russell. Green has the ability to slot in anywhere in the batting order, and is also a handy seamer as well as an asset in the field.Related
-
IPL auction: Green could be biggest buy, but can't cross INR 18 crore mark
-
LSG set to retain Mayank but will release Bishnoi, Miller, Akash Deep
-
Livingstone set to be released by RCB
-
CSK to release Matheesha Pathirana
-
Venkatesh Iyer heads long list of big-ticket players released by KKR
KKR released nine players, including Venkatesh Iyer whom they bought for a vast sum of 23.5 crore at the mega-auction last year, and have 12 slots to fill, including six overseas. The second-highest purse is that of five-time champions CSK, who have nine slots to fill, including four overseas players.Several of the names that were recently released by franchises have listed themselves in the highest reserve price bracket. This includes Sri Lanka fast bowler Pathirana, whom CSK had last year retained for 13 crore ahead of the mega auction. Though he was their lead bowler in the second half of the innings, especially in the death overs, his struggles with injury were a key reason for CSK’s subsequent decision.England allrounder Livingstone, who was bought by Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the mega-auction for 8.75 crore, lasted just one season with the defending champions after a below-par performance.The Indians who have listed themselves in the 2 crore reserve price include Venkatesh and Bishnoi, who was last year retained by Lucknow Super Giants for 11 crore. However, weak year-on-year numbers during his four-year stint led LSG to release the legspinner.Another Australian who played a key role in PBKS’s run to the final is wicketkeeper-batter Josh Inglis, but he too is back in the auction pool. Though this move came as a surprise to many, it is understood that Inglis could not commit to playing the entire 2026 season for personal reasons. On Monday, the IPL notified franchises that Inglis’s availability during 2026 season would be at 25%.Base Price of 2 crore: Ravi Bishnoi, Venkatesh Iyer, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Naveen ul Haq, Sean Abott, Ashton Agar, Cooper Connolly, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Cameron Green, Josh Inglis, Steve Smith, Mustafizur Rahman, Gus Atkinson, Tom Banton, Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, Ben Duckett, Dan Lawrence, Liam Livingstone, Tymal Mills, Jamie Smith, Finn Allen, Michael Bracewell, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Adam Milne, Daryll Mitchell, Will O’Rourke, Rachin Ravindra, Gerald Coetzee, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Rilee Roussouw, Tabraiz Shamsi, David Wiese, Wanindu Hasaranga, Mateesha Pathirana, Maheesh Theekshana, Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph
