IPL 2025: Lucknow Super Giants Likely To Retain Five Players
The Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) confirmed that Nicholas Pooran, Mayank Yadav and Ravi Bishnoi are set to be retained for Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. The uncapped duo Ayush Badoni and Mohsin Khan will stay with the franchise as well. KL Rahul Remains Uncertain At Lucknow Super Giants KL Rahul is the skipper, however it might happen that the captain and player could both not be retained in case of drastic change on both ends. Thus, LSG would remain with just one RTM card available for auctioning. LSG’s Budget Although the retained players’ numbers have not been announced yet, the cut on the LSG budget is expected to be around INR 51 crores. In case the five retained players are more than the reported amount, the total cut will be made from the overall IPL 2025 purse of INR 120 crores. Nicholas Pooran: A Star Performer The sources indicate that Pooran would be the number one retainer, followed by Mayank and Bishnoi. During the 2024 season, Pooran was in excellent form as he finished only second to Rahul. He also served as the replacement captain and wicket-keeper during the injury times of Rahul. Pooran is a 29-year-old power-hitter who was bought by LSG for INR 16 crore before the 2023 season. His market value has gone through the roof since his IPL debut in 2017. Mayank Yadav’s Promising Start Mayank Yadav, for instance, is another highly talented fast bowler, who took two consecutive games as Player-of-the-Match in IPL 2024. He got short of playing just four games due to a side strain. He did find an entry into the group of fast bowlers formed by the national selectors sooner rather than later. INR 20 lakhs LSG spent to auction in 2024 but could play seven matches as many as the last International. Ravi Bishnoi: The Star Bowler Ravi Bishnoi, retained for INR 4 crore before the 2022 mega auction, has been an integral part of the LSG bowling unit. He took 13 wickets at a very decent average in 2022 and was again excellent the following year with 16 wickets, as he guided LSG to playoffs both seasons. But his season was a bit disappointing when he could manage only 10 wickets in 14 matches. Unrestricted Talents: Badoni and Mohsin Uncapped talents Badoni and Mohsin Khan, signed for INR 20 lakhs this year, are another such assets the franchise will also look to hold onto as long as possible. Last season, Badoni looked a force to be reckoned with as a new-age aggressive middle-order battler, scoring 238 runs at a strike-rate of 138, further impressing in the Emerging Series for India A. Mohsin, with raw left-arm fast-bowling talent, bowled his way to 14 scalps in just nine appearances in his first season with a franchise. Although he had a severe injury, he recovered successfully in 2023 and finished the 2024 season with 10 wickets in 10 matches. Future Outlook In the near future, with such smart retention, LSG will strengthen their team and perform well in IPL 2025. The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
IPL 2025: KKR Likely To Overhaul Player Retention List
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) look to have a major overhaul before Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. Captaincy of the team during winning the title in 2024 has hardly protected Shreyas Iyer along with two such veterans, one an old-timer Andre Russell who has been there from his early years with Kolkata. Another fast bowler will be Australian Mitchell Starc. Instead, they wish for core players in their fraternity such as Sunil Narine, Rinku Singh, Varun Chakravarthy along with promising young fast bowling talent Harshit Rana. KKR To Part Ways With Iyer And Russell It has gone even further by choosing to send both Iyer and Russell out of their way. Shreyas Iyer, KKR’s costliest buy in the auction held in 2022 at INR 12.25 crores, had scored 351 runs at a strike rate approaching 147 during this year’s season where the game was won by the side he represented. Meanwhile, Russell, KKR staple since 2014 has had his stint, showing promise with his striking innings of 222 and important wickets – 19. Both seem likely candidate for another team to lure them in auction. Starc To Have Meagre Possibility For Retention After achieving the bargain to sign up Mitchell Starc at an all-time INR 24.75 crore for 2024, KKR has set itself free to leave behind the Australian pacer. Though Starc, whose league campaign more or less went unremembered, gave excellent showings during the playoffs with 3/34 and 2/14 each in knockout phases that contributed to bringing KKR a title for itself, this seems one more step where KKR seems to consider redistribution of fund for a probable younger generation of players from a futures point of view. Narine, Chakravarthy and Rinku Expected to Lead KKR’s Retention List Sunil Narine, who rendered valuable services as an explosive opener and a safe-plays bowler, has been cemented in KKR’s retentions. The league was one of Narine’s star performers by taking 17 wickets at an economy rate of 6.69. Retained at an INR 8-crore cap for the 2022 version by KKR, Varun Chakravarthy has still gone on to be their top wicket-taker in the two editions so far; he hasn’t had a strike rate of less than that of a shade over 19 till date. While Rinku Singh has got everyone talking and a strike rate of 207.97, he has gotten picked for the T20I side repeatedly and needed to have been retained prior as one of the bigger promises of the future during the same time. The Auction Strategy Of KKR KKR is also weighing its options on the retention of fast bowler Harshit Rana who has been included in the India Test squad and explosive batter Ramandeep Singh, whose potential remains to be tested. These two retentions will push KKR’s total retention cost between INR 47 crore and INR 51 crore, pending final selections. With a maximum of six retained players being allowed in each franchise and only five capped internationals being retained, the submission deadline on October 31 forces KKR to maintain a delicate balance between experience and young talent. A Fresh Start For KKR In IPL 2025 By saying that the new season of 2025 will look into a much younger dynamic side, KKR seems to send a strategic message over their plans. This seems likely to shake up greatly with the mega auction during the season where the franchises seem to find ways for their remaining slots and better edge to face the competitions that await them in IPL for the year 2025. The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
IPL 2025: MS Dhoni Among Chennai Super Kings’ Retentions
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have retained their former Captain and of course the face of their franchise, MS Dhoni among five of its players. Among others, the retained list included players like Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ravindra Jadeja, Shivam Dube, and Sri Lankan pacer Matheesha Pathirana. Their decision reflects a mix of veteran talent and emerging talent within CSK. Chennai Super Kings’ Landscape Of Bidding Although it is not known how much CSK will pay for each retained player, this set of retentions would strip the franchise of at least INR 65 crore from its overall purse of INR 120 crore. The five players picked here leave CSK with just one RTM option during the auction, which puts it well in the overall landscape of bidding. Dhoni’s Uncapped Status Now 43 years old, Dhoni is likely to be retained in the uncapped category. This status is special because the IPL recently announced a rule wherein players who have not played international cricket for five years can be considered “uncapped.” Dhoni last represented India during the 2019 ODI World Cup. Thus, he is eligible for this category and will allow CSK to play flexibility with their auction purse. Dhoni’s New Role in CSK and His Future Plans After having invested the CSK captaincy in Gaikwad before the season of the IPL 2024, Dhoni turned more on the fringes as a player and batted just marginally and played little cricket with very less role for him in batting. Although he retained his place as a primary wicket-keeper for the side, he got to face just 73 balls in the last 11 innings played by CSK. Moreover, those were mainly the overs where he was brought down in the latter end, No. 8 or No. 9 in most cases so as not to exert his muscles after a knee surgery early in the year 2023. Dhoni has recently said that he would like to enjoy whatever last few years of cricket he is able to play and his scarce batting appearances in IPL 2024 were an opportunity for players like Dube and Jadeja to show their skills and make their case for selection into the Indian Cricket Team before the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024. The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
IPL 2025 Mega Auction: All You Need To Know In A Q&A Format
With the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 Mega Auction just around the corner, franchises are finalizing player retention and fans are eagerly waiting for updates on team compositions. So, here’s a comprehensive Q&A on everything you want to know before the big day. Q1: How many players can each IPL team retain before the mega auction? As many as six players can be retained by each team from their IPL 2024 roster. Those can include a maximum of five capped internationals and two uncapped Indian players. This six-player retention limit helps retain the core for teams before the auction. Q2: What is the cost of player retention for teams? Every IPL franchise has a budget of INR 120 crore for building their squads for the 2025 season, up 20% from last year. Here is the list: First retained player: INR 18 croreSecond retained player: INR 14 croreThird retained player: INR 11 croreFourth retained player: INR 18 croreFifth retained player: INR 14 croreEvery uncapped Indian player: INR 4 crore If a team continues to retain five capped players then they will lose at least INR 75 crores from their purse. Q3: Are the five capped players to be decided or split by the team within the retention amount? Yes. The amount of INR 75 crore that is required to retain five capped players can be split in any proportion, but the total amount cannot exceed INR 75 crore. So, if a franchise wants to retain its star player at INR 23 crore, it could retain a fifth player at a lower amount to balance the budget. Q4: What’s the buzz around player retention and the challenges teams face? Sunrisers Hyderabad has only fueled the controversy with reports that it plans to retain Heinrich Klaasen for INR 23 crore. In this case, the other teams like Mumbai Indians who are planning to retain the marquee players Hardik Pandya, Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah and Suryakumar Yadav, would be the ones having to make tricky decisions regarding fair distribution of their retention purse. Besides, there is talk that the players such as Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer may also choose to go for the auction rather than retention. Q5: What is the Right-to-Match (RTM) option and how does it work? The RTM option allows teams to bid back for players during the auction if they did not retain them earlier. Here’s how it works. A team that retains less than six players on October 31 can use RTM options in the mega auction. If they retain three players, for instance, they are eligible to use three RTM options. In the IPL 2025 auction, if the former player of a team is sold by another franchise, the selling team has an option to match the highest and buy back the player However, this year, with a new twist, should a team exercise an RTM, the highest bidding franchise can raise their original bid again. The exercising team must then match this new, higher bid so that they can secure the player. Q6. How does the RTM rule affect uncapped players? If an IPL franchise has retained five capped players, they can only use their RTM option to buy back an uncapped player. If two uncapped players are already retained, teams can’t use RTM on an additional uncapped player during the auction. Q7: Why is MS Dhoni now considered an uncapped player and how does that impact Chennai Super Kings? The IPL has brought back a regulation through which players who retired, or have not played cricket at the international level within the last five years of the draft, would go under the uncapped segment. This ensures the Chennai Super Kings can keep MS Dhoni as an uncapped player and forfeit just INR 4 crores from their purse while the rest can be more. Q8: Can a player decline retention by his own IPL franchise? Yes. A player can decline a retention offered by his very own IPL franchise and go under the hammer. Also, no trades of players allowed between the date of the retention on October 31, 2024 and the start of IPL 2025 season. Q9: When is the IPL 2025 Mega Auction? Although the official date for the IPL 2025 Mega Auction is yet not declared, it is supposed to happen in the last week of November. The IPL auction generally happens over two days. The retention deadline draws near on October 31st, 2024 and teams build up on their strategies ahead of what is to be an exciting IPL 2025 Mega Auction. The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
Reliance To Stop IPL Streaming On JioCinema Post Hotstar Merger
It is understood that Reliance Industries will no longer stream the Indian Premier League (IPL) on its JioCinema platform from the 2025 season onwards. After merging with Disney India for USD 8.5 billion/- in February 2024, the merged entity boasts 120 TV channels and two major streaming services: Jio Cinema and Disney+ Hotstar. IPL and other Sports Events to Shift to Disney+ Hotstar It is reported that the latest sports events will be shifted to Disney+ Hotstar by January 2025. Jio Cinema, holding digital rights for cricket matches in India, including IPL, will not have sports streaming any more. Instead, sports content, such as the ICC tournaments, will be consolidated on Disney+ Hotstar. This transition decision is thus believed to be prompted by the better live streaming technology of Hotstar and its potential in handling targeted advertising while presenting itself as an attractive place for many of these high-demand sports events. Technological Edge and Future Plans of Hotstar With the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 final, wherein it touched a record 59 million viewers, Hotstar has certainly proved to be highly reliable in terms of handling high viewership. As reported, Sajith Sivanandan, head of Hotstar in India, has made all teams aware of the changes that are coming in live sports streaming. Bringing all content under the one home of Hotstar will maintain the optimization of user experience and take advantage of the backend streaming capabilities of Hotstar. Lack of Clarity on Entertainment Content There is no clear news concerning the merger of entertainment content between Jio Cinema and Disney+ Hotstar. It is uncertain whether these services will coexist or if one of the players will become extinct. The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
IPL 2025: BCCI Looks for Saudi Arabia as Venue for Mega Auction
BCCI is looking at Riyadh and Jeddah as possible destinations for the much-awaited IPL 2025 mega auction that is scheduled to take place in the last week of November. It was earlier considered to be held in Dubai, however not anymore. The BCCI officials are said to have found it challenging to source a suitable venue or hotel in Saudi Arabia since the costs have gone higher than what it used to be in Dubai where the last IPL auction took place successfully in December 2023. Even though the Indian Premier League franchises and BCCI boast of financial muscles, the search for the right location seems tight. London First Perturbation London was initially considered, but BCCI removed the UK from their list citing unfavourable cold weather at this time of the year. Now, they are eyeing a venue that will easily accommodate an auction spread over two days and a huge IPL entourage involving 10 franchise representatives and other major broadcasters like Jio and Disney Star. The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
All You Need To Know About GMR Group’s Deal With Hampshire
Hampshire announces the deal with GMR Group, becoming the first English county cricket club owned by an overseas investor. Here’s what the deal means in practice. Have Delhi Capitals bought Hampshire? Not exactly. Delhi Capitals is a 50-50 joint venture between the two sports arms of Indian conglomerates JSW Group and GMR Group. GMR had bought the Delhi franchise – then called Delhi Daredevils – before the first season of the IPL in 2008 and sold 50% to JSW in 2018. GMR are the only relevant party in the Hampshire deal. Who are GMR and why have they invested in cricket? The GMR group describe themselves as a leading infrastructure developer who own and manage projects in a number of different areas. They own and run six airports, including Delhi and Hyderabad. GMR says its sports division has the social objective of promoting and nurturing potential talent at the grassroot level in Delhi while the IPL has proved a lucrative investment: having paid US$84 million for the Delhi franchise in 2008, they sold a 50% stake in 2018 for US$66m. Do GMR own any other teams? Yes. GMR are the owners of Dubai Capitals in the UAE’s ILT20, India Capitals in the Legends League Cricket (LLC) and have a stake in Seattle Orcas (MLC). JSW, their IPL co-owners, run Pretoria Capitals in South Africa’s SA20 and the two companies also co-own Delhi Capitals Women in India’s WPL. GMR also owns teams in kabaddi and kho-kho. Has GMR taken over at Hampshire? Hampshire Cricket announced on Monday morning that GMR have bought a majority stake – reported to be 53%-in Hampshire Sport & Leisure Holdings Ltd, with a full buyout to be completed in two years. Rod Bransgrove, chair, and David Mann, chief executive, will stay in place until that two-year period has elapsed. What does this mean for the Hundred? In effect, the ECB began the process of disposing stakes in the eight Hundred teams at the beginning of the month. Under this model, the ECB would sell 49% stakes in every team to private investors and transfer 51% to the host venue or county, which in Southern Brave’s case would be Hampshire. Will GMR become the majority owners of Southern Brave by default? No, it isn’t. The ECB’s sales process contains a clause which allows the ECB the discretion whether or not to sell 51% stakes to hosts. They can decide to hold onto it if they feel that an investor is trying to bypass the wider sale process or buying a franchise up the backstairs. The deal is not dependent on getting a Hundred franchise. But in reality…? The ECB have consulted with every franchise in the IPL and WPL to invest into Hundred teams, and GMR seem very likely to make a bid for the remaining 49% in the sales process of Southern Brave. If GMR’s bid is accepted by the ECB as being at fair market value, Hampshire would then be sold the other 51% and GMR would, therefore, be considered 100% owners of the Hundred franchise. What’s in it for Hampshire? Most obviously, money. Hampshire said in a statement that the deal was designed to strengthen the financial position of their parent company, which also runs the on-site hotel and golf course at the Utilita Bowl. GMR will provide a material injection of capital to reduce the leveraging of the company – in other words, starting to pay off Hampshire’s £60 million debt. Bransgrove said GMR was selected following a rigorous selection process due to its aligned values and commitment to our vision. The Utilita Bowl has awarded the first men’s Ashes Test in 2027, with Bransgrove saying it needed investment to allow Hampshire to remain at the top table. Didn’t Hampshire do something like this previously? Yes. Hampshire were formerly part of a remarkably short-lived tie-in with Rajasthan Royals back in 2010, playing as Hampshire Royals for four years as one of five ‘Royals2020’ teams globally. The arrangement was quietly mothballed after a row between Rajasthan’s owners and the IPL saw the franchise briefly expelled from the competition. What’s Kevin Pietersen got to do with it? Kevin Pietersen played a behind-the-scenes role to try to grease the wheels of the deal as a common link between Bransgrove and GMR’s Kiran Kumar Grandhi. Pietersen played for both Hampshire and Delhi Daredevils (as they were then known) during his playing career. Will Hampshire’s deal be the first of many in county cricket? Maybe, but not straight away. Hampshire are one of only three counties, the others being Durham and Northamptonshire, that are private limited companies rather than member-run mutual ‘societies’, though Yorkshire’s chairman Colin Graves is trying to demutualise the club to unlock the door for private investment. Most of the counties rely on ECB central funding for revenue and therefore might consider private investment as an alternative source. The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
BCCI Confirms Match Fees for IPL 2025
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) aims to provide Indian Premier League (IPL) players with a huge amount when it introduced a match fee for INR 7.5 lakh-a sum of almost $ 9000-to be spent per game from IPL 2025. This will be on top of the match fee of their contracts, whose franchises would have to allocate INR 12.6 crore (approximately US$ 1 million), according to BCCI Secretary Jay Shah on X. Above And Beyond Auction Purse The match fees, of course, add up to INR 90 lakh for each match and over 14 league matches add up to the total payout of INR 12.6 crore in cash for the season. Boost For Low Contract Players The new policy is expected to increase the earnings of those players signed at or near their base price at auctions but have risen in stature over the course of their IPL career. For example, take the case of Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) batter Rajat Patidar, who signed initially at an uncapped price of INR 20 lakh. Under this new match fee rule, when Patidar plays 15 IPL 2024 matches, he earns an excess of INR 1.125 crore. The Concerns Of The Franchises Franchise owners did express dissent, however, to the new plan. That reportedly needs to know whether the benchwarmers will be included or not. In earlier times, players were rewarded with discretionary bonuses up to the performance of the team. However, the IPL reportedly will not go beyond the match fee, which was proposed. The final retention rules will shed more light on the issue ahead of the mega auction in 2025. The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
IPL 2025 Retention Rules Announced
The wait is finally over! The Indian Premier League (IPL) mega auction 2025 retention rules are finally out. Fans have been abuzz, and now, it’s the turn of the IPL Governing Council to make things official. Here’s what the retention rules look like. 1. Retention Limit A franchise is entitled to retain only 6 players from its existing squad. This includes, however, both standard retentions as well as the RTM. 2. Retention And RTM Teams can choose to impact the number of retention and RTMs, however must have an absolute cap of 5 capped players either Indian or overseas and up to 2 uncapped players. 3. Salary Cap The franchise auction purse has been put at INR 120 Crore for IPL 2025. It includes the total salary cap with an auction purse, performance bonuses and new match fees. This amount has increased from 2024’s total of INR 110 Crore and will be INR 146 Crore in 2025, INR 151 Crore in 2026, and INR 157 Crore in 2027. 4. Additional Match Fees For the first time ever, all players including the Impact Player, will be entitled to a match fee of INR 7.5 Lakhs besides his contracted salary on each match played. 5. Overseas Player Registration An overseas player who wants to play will have to get himself registered for the IPL Mega Auction. Any player, not getting himself registered for the Big Auction, cannot attend the following seasons in the auctions. 6. No-Shows Face Consequences Players who are selected at the auction but are unavailable during the season will be banned by the IPL for 2 seasons. 7. Capped And Uncapped Rule Each Indian player who never played in the starting XI for a Test, an ODI or a T20I in the last five years or does not hold a BCCI central contract will be declared as uncapped. This is only applicable to Indian players. 8. Impact Sub Continues The impact player rule remains in force for the IPL 2025–2027 cycle. Now that the official rules are out, let the speculations begin! Which stars will your favorite franchise lock in for the upcoming IPL season? The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
IPL Governing Council to Release New Retention Rules Amid Speculations
The Indian Premier League (IPL) Governing Council will discuss new retention rules during their meeting in Bengaluru. The much-awaited announcement on the retention rules of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is expected soon, as the IPL Governing Council (GC) convenes today at 11:30 AM at the Four Seasons Hotel in Bengaluru. The notices for the meet were dispatched only on Friday evening, and it is quite evident that the decision-making process has hastened, leading to widespread speculation about the kind of retention policy the BCCI would select. Mega-Auction Expected in November, Possibly in the Gulf The retention rules are expected to come into play big time while determining team strategies before the mega-auction, which is stated to be scheduled tentatively for late November. The auction is likely to happen overseas, and cities in the Gulf are said to be battling for the hosting rights. The strong contender has emerged as Saudi Arabia and Riyadh is likely to host the event if the GC gives nod to it. Retention Decision May Depend On General Body Meeting While an announcement is likely to be made post the much-awaited GC meeting later today, the final decision on retention is now said to await the all-important general body meeting scheduled for Sunday in Bengaluru. It would ensure that the interests of all stakeholders are in symmetry when the official word is spilled. Number of Retentions to Be Speculated Speculations regarding the number of players retained are rife, with some guessing between 2 and 8 players. More than likely, the BCCI will have to compromise on the numbers on the retention list at 5-6 players, along with the right to match. Then owners of the IPL teams are consulted by the BCCI in a July meeting to get their feedback on key matters, including retention. The details are expected to be finalized here today and with that setting the stage for another auction ahead of IPL 2025. Cricket fans can now wait with bated breath for the official announcement. The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye