IPL 2026 Mini-Auction Preview: Team Purse, Players Trade (Photo source: X/IPL)
The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 mini-auction is scheduled to take place on December 16 at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. This will be the third IPL auction held outside India. Renowned auctioneer Mallika Sagar will conduct the proceedings. The auction is scheduled to begin at 1:00 PM UAE time (2:30 PM Indian Standard Time) on Tuesday.
Out of 1,355 players who registered for the auction, 359 players have been shortlisted. Among them, 244 are Indian players, while 115 are overseas cricketers. A total of 40 players have set their base price at the maximum limit of INR 2 crore. Interestingly, only two Indians, Venkatesh Iyer and Ravi Bishnoi, feature in this elite group.
Across all franchises, 77 slots are available to be filled, including 31 overseas slots. Kolkata Knight Riders have the highest number of vacancies with 13 slots, followed closely by Sunrisers Hyderabad, who have 10 slots remaining. As per IPL regulations, the maximum squad size for a franchise is 25 players, with a cap of eight overseas players. Teams must also maintain a minimum squad size of 18 players. The auction will begin with the set of capped batters.
Here are the list of players traded ahead of IPL 2026
| Sr. No. | Player | Trade From | Traded To | Trade Type | Amount (INR) |
| 1 | Shardul Thakur | Lucknow Super Giants | Mumbai Indians | Cash Deal | 2 crore |
| 2 | Sherfane Rutherford | Gujarat Titans | Mumbai Indians | Cash Deal | 2.6 crore |
| 3 | Sanju Samson | Rajasthan Royals | Chennai Super Kings | Player Swap | 18 crore |
| 4 | Ravindra Jadeja | Chennai Super Kings | Rajasthan Royals | Player Swap | 14 crore |
| 5 | Sam Curran | Chennai Super Kings | Rajasthan Royals | Player Swap | 2.4 crore |
| 6 | Arjun Tendulkar | Mumbai Indians | Lucknow Super Giants | Cash Deal | 30 lakh |
| 7 | Mohammed Shami | Sunrisers Hyderabad | Lucknow Super Giants | Cash Deal | 10 crore |
| 8 | Mayank Markande | Kolkata Knight Riders | Mumbai Indians | Cash Deal | 30 lakh |
| 9 | Nitish Rana | Rajasthan Royals | Delhi Capitals | Cash Deal | 4.2 crore |
| 10 | Donovan Ferreira | Delhi Capitals | Rajasthan Royals | Cash Deal | 1 crore |
Complete breakdown of capped and uncapped players
| Sr. No | Capped/Uncapped players | No. of players |
| 1 | Capped Indians | 16 |
| 2 | Capped Overseas | 96 |
| 3 | Uncapped Indian | 224 |
| 4 | Uncapped overseas | 14 |
| Total | 350 |
Full list of players and their base price
| Sr. No | Reserve Price (in INR lakh) | No. of players |
| 1 | 200 | 40 |
| 2 | 150 | 9 |
| 3 | 125 | 4 |
| 4 | 100 | 17 |
| 5 | 75 | 42 |
| 6 | 50 | 4 |
| 7 | 40 | 7 |
| 8 | 30 | 227 |
| Total | 350 |
Team-wise Purse ahead of IPL 2026 Auctions
| Teams | Purse Remaining (INR) | Retained | Released |
| Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) | 25.50 crore | 15 | 8 |
| Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) | 22.95 crore | 19 | 8 |
| Punjab Kings (PBKS) | 11.50 crore | 21 | 5 |
| Gujarat Titans (GT) | 12.9 crore | 20 | 6 |
| Delhi Capitals (DC) | 21.80 crore | 17 | 7 |
| Rajasthan Royals (RR) | 16.05 crore | 16 | 9 |
| Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) | 64.3 crore | 12 | 10 |
| Chennai Super Kings (CSK) | 43.4 crore | 16 | 12 |
| Mumbai Indians (MI) | 2.75 crore | 20 | 9 |
| Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) | 16.4 crore | 17 | 8 |
ILT20 2025-26, Match 15 Review: Desert Vipers secure playoffs qualification post five-wicket win over Dubai Capitals
IND vs SA 2025: ‘It’s fantastic to see a player make the most of his chance’ – Legendary South African pacer on Harshit Rana’s performance in 3rd T20I
IPL 2026: Bengal captain Abhimanyu Easwaran added to Auction player list
Suryakumar Yadav can’t be hiding in the dugout to make a comeback: Mohammad Kaif
