IPL 2025 Mega Auction: Revisiting top buys in IPL history as decacorn league beckons in Jeddah

CHENNAI: With the IPL mega auction looming, teams will be looking to break the bank, aiming to assemble a balanced side. A Total of 577 players up for grabs in this auction which promises to be a money-fuelled frenzy, setting new records and sparking fierce bidding wars — just like the jaw-dropping buys we’ve seen since the league’s inception in 2008.

The inaugural season saw teams operating with a modest budget cap of $ 5 million (20 crore). Back then, MS Dhoni was the priciest buy at $ 1.5 million by Chennai Super Kings. Fast forward to 2024, Mitchell Starc shattered all records, fetching Rs 24.75 crore from Kolkata Knight Riders — more than an entire team’s budget in 2008.

It was an era when franchise ownership deals were sealed for massive sums, with Mumbai Indians top of the pile selling at $111.9 million to Reliance Industries Ltd.

This year, the record Rs 24.75 crore bid is likely to be shattered, especially with the Indian wicket-keeper batter Rishabh Pant entering the auction pool. Teams like Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru, armed with hefty purses, could make history by producing the league’s most expensive player yet — potentially an Indian.

Such a feat would be groundbreaking, considering only two Indians, Yuvaraj Singh (16 crore in 2016) and Ishan Kishan (15.25 crore in 2022), feature among the top 10 costliest buys in IPL history.

In the 17 IPL auctions so far, Indian players became the most expensive buys only seven times. After MS Dhoni topped the ranks in the inaugural edition, it was in 2011 when Gautam Gambhir broke the record at the first mega auction of the league to become the highest valued Indian with $ 2.4 million to Kolkata Knight Riders.

It was an all-Indian top three costliest buys that year as Yusuf Pathan and Robin Uthappa also fetched $2.1 million.

That was the start of the trend where Indian players have gone on to shine bright at mega auctions whereas overseas players tend to steal the show at mini auctions, amassing massive paychecks. However, the new regulations from BCCI to put a cost cap and exclusion from the mini-auction if they fail to register for the mega auction will put a halt to overseas players draining money out of franchises.

Only in the 2018 mega auction did an overseas player become the costliest buy in IPL history with Rajasthan Royals splurging Rs 12.5 crore on English all-rounder Ben Stokes.

However, the next year in mini auction saw uncapped Tamil Nadu bowler Varun Charkravarthy alongside pacer Jayadev Unadkat shock the auction table with a whopping Rs 8.4 crore bid, the highest that year.

The next surprise was in 2022 when Mumbai Indians bought Ishan Kishan for Rs 15.25 crore, making him the second highest Indian player in IPL history.

As this would be the first mega action in the Impact Player-era, the approach all 10 franchises take to spend the purse to build its 25-member roster will be one to look forward to.

With there being many unknowns as to how the auction will unfold, let’s take a look at the top buys every season in IPL history from 2008 to 2024:

2008 (Inaugural season)

MS Dhoni (Chennai Super Kings) - $1.5 million

Andrew Symonds (Deccan Chargers)- $ 1.35 million

Sanath Jayasuriya (Mumbai Indians)- $975,000

2009

Kevin Pieterson (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) - $ 1.55 million

Andrew Flintoff (Chennai Super Kings) - $1.55 million

JP Duminy (Mumbai Indians) - $950,000

2010

Shane Bond (Kolkata Knight Riders) - $750,000

Kieron Pollard (Mumbai Indians) - $750,000

Kemar Roach (Deccan Chargers) - $720,000

2011 (Mega Auction)

Gautam Gambhir (Kolkata Knight Riders) - $ 2.4 million

Yusuf Pathan (Kolkata Knight Riders) - $2.1 million

Robin Uthappa - $2.1 million

2012

Ravindra Jadeja (Chennai Super Kings) - $ 2 million

Mahela Jayawardene (Delhi Daredevils) - $1.4 million

Brendon McCullum (Kolkata Knight Riders) - $900,000

2013

Glenn Maxwell (Mumbai Indians) - $ 1 million

Ajantha Mendis (Pune Warriors India) - $725,000

Kane Richardson (Pune Warriors India) - $700,000

2014 (Mega Auction)

Yuvraj Singh (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) - Rs 14 crore

Dinesh Karthik (Delhi Daredevils) - Rs 12.5 crore

Kevin Pietersen (Delhi Daredevils) - Rs 9 crore

2015

Yuvraj Singh (Delhi Daredevils) - Rs 16 crore

Dinesh Karthik (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) - Rs 10.5 crore

Angelo Mathews (Delhi Daredevils) - Rs 7.5 crore

2016

Shane Watson (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) - Rs 9.5 crore

Pawan Negi (Delhi Daredevils) - Rs 8.5 crore

Yuvraj Singh (Sunrisers Hyderabad) - Rs 7 crore

2017

Ben Stokes (Rising Pune Supergiants) - Rs 14.5 crore

Tymal Mills (Royal Challengers Bangalore) - Rs 12 crore

Kagiso Rabada (Delhi Daredevils) - Rs 5 crore

2018 (Mega Auction)

Ben Stokes (Rajasthan Royals) - Rs 12.5 crore

Jaydev Unadkat (Rajasthan Royals) - Rs 11.5 crore

Manish Pandey (Sunrisers Hyderabad) and KL Rahul (Kings XI Punjab) - Rs 11 crore

2019

Varun Chakravarthy (Kings XI Punjab) - Rs 8.4 crore

Jaydev Unadkat (Rajasthan Royals) - Rs 8.4 crore

Sam Curran (Royal Challengers Bangalore) - Rs 7.2 crore

2020

Pat Cummins (Kolkata Knight Riders) - Rs 15.5 crore

Glenn Maxwell (Kings XI Punjab) - Rs 10.75 crore

Chris Morris (Royal Challengers Bangalore) - Rs 10 crore

2021

Chris Morris (Rajasthan Royals) - Rs 16.25 crore

Kyle Jamieson (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) - Rs 15 crore

Glenn Maxwell (Royal Challengers Bangalore) - Rs 14.25 crores

2022 (Mega Auction)

Ishan Kishan (Mumbai Indians) - Rs 15.25 crore

Deepak Chahar (Chennai Super Kings) - Rs 14 crore

Shreyas Iyer (Kolkata Knight Riders) - Rs 12.25 crore

2023

Sam Curran (Punjab Kings) - Rs 18.5 crore

Cameron Green (Mumbai Indians) - Rs 17.5 crore

Ben Stokes (Chennai Super Kings) - Rs 16.25)

2024

Mitchell Starc (Kolkata Knight Riders) - Rs 24.75 crore

Pat Cummins (Sunrisers Hyderabad) - Rs 20.5 crore

Daryl Mitchell (Chennai Super Kings) - Rs 14 crore