CHENNAI TO STAGE IPL MINI AUCTION ON FEBRUARY 18

The core management teams of eight IPL franchises will be back at the auction table on February 18 in Chennai, a day after the second Test of England’s tour to India ends. The date and venue confirmation of the mini auction was made on IPL’S official twitter handle on Wednesday.

Teams will be left to make some tricky selection calls, with IPL’S return home still not a certainty. At the IPL governing council meeting held earlier in the month, BCCI officials had reiterated their “desire to stage the league in India, health situation permitting”. A successful conduct of the upcoming series at home against England in biosecure hubs is expected to pave the way for IPL in India. The UAE remains a fallback option.

Knowledge of the venue holds significance for teams during the auctions; critical decisions about the formation of a bowling attack, for example, are dependent on where the IPL will be played. Chennai Super Kings, who have used spin as a weapon to win at home, were left at a disadvantage in 2020 on the pacier wickets in UAE.

After releasing Kedar Jadhav, Murali Vijay, Harbhajan Singh, Piyush Chawla, Monu Singh and Shane Watson (retired), they have ₹22.90 crores left, but only one overseas vacancy. Conversely, defending champions Mumbai Indians have four empty overseas slots, and a purse of ₹15.35 crores which could be spent to find replacements for Lasith Malinga (retired), Nathan Coulter-nile, James Pattinson and Mitchell Mccleneghan. KX1P, RCB and Rajasthan Royals will have the most purchasing power on the auction table.