IPL 2021 Auction – 3 way battle between KXIP, RCB and RR: The mini-auction for the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2021) is all set to be a 3 horse race between Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). Reason these 3 franchises hold 65% of the total available players purse of 196.5 Cr to spend on the players. KXIP, RR and RCB collectively have 126.5 Cr to spend on the players. The rest 5 franchises Chennai Super Kings, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Delhi Capitals, Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders will just have 70 Cr collectively in their kitty to bid for the players.
IPL Auction Maths
– Total Money to be spent on IPL Auctions on Feb 18th – 196.5 Cr
– KXIP, RCB & RR holds 65% of the total money with – 126.5 Cr in the kitty
– CSK, SRH, DC, MI & KKR collectively has just 35% – 70 Cr to bid for the players
This clearly means, as 292 players will go under the hammer on February 18 in Chennai – KXIP, RCB, RR will be most active and rest just silent spectators.
Kings XI Punjab (Rs 53.2 Cr): With Rs 53.2 crore war chest, KXIP will be the most aggressive franchise on Thursday. They have released Glenn Maxwell, Karun Nair, Sheldon Cottrell, and Jimmy Neesham amongst others. A top-order batsman will be absolutely necessary to support openers Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul. Considering that, Steve Smith looks to be the obvious target. He can bring in the quality Punjab need.
Rajasthan Royals (Rs 37.85 Cr):
Rajasthan Royals with Rs 37.85 crore will have a large purse. Smith’s release, they will need to fill the void with some top quality batsman in the top-order. Apart from that, they will need to reinforce bowling attack having released Ankit Rajpoot and Oshane Thomas and Tom Curran.
Royal Challengers Bangalore (Rs 35.4 Cr): The disappointments of IPL 2020 where they failed to qualify for the final will also force RCB to go hard after top players so that they can regroup and have squad depth. RCB need a wicketkeeper-batsman, a spinner all-rounder to replace Moeen Ali, and a specialist pacer after releasing Umesh Yadav and Dale Steyn, who decided to stay away from IPL this time around.
Chennai Super Kings (Rs 19.9 Cr): CSK with Rs 19.9 cr will need an all-rounder who could be a like-to-like replacement of Shane Watson, who called it quits recently. Shakib Al Hasan, who is back from a one-year suspension could be one choice. Otherwise, Tom Curran looks like an exciting option. However, Dawid Malan, No 1 T20 batsman at present could be another option.
The rest: Mumbai Indians will need a pacer and with Rs 15.35 cr fund, they will surely go after some top bowlers. Last edition’s runners-up, Delhi Capitals, have a solid bunch but they will go for some domestic players to reinforce the squad. Similarly, Sunrises Hyderabad have retained the core of the team that finished third last season. But they too will need some reinforcements with just Rs 10.75 cr to play with. Kolkata Knight Riders also have retained their core. But they would need reinforcements too. With just Rs 10.75 Cr, they will be severely restricted on Thursday, though.