The IPL 2026 mini-auction came to a glorious end, as all 77 slots were filled by the conclusion of the event. This is the first time that all 10 teams would go into the tournament with all their slots filled. IPL 2026 is reportedly going to start on March 26 and will conclude on Sunday, May 31.
Ahead of the 19th edition of the mega tournament, let’s take a look at the top buys from the IPL 2026 mini-auction:
Cameron Green: As expected, the Australian allrounder went for big money. Mumbai Indians began the bid at his base price of Rs 2 crore and the Rajasthan Royals joined them in. MI exited the bid at Rs 2.4 crore and the Kolkata Knight Riders joined in.
Rajasthan exited the bid at Rs 13.4 crore and the Chennai Super Kings joined in. CSK’s final
bid was a whopping Rs 25 crore and Kolkata bagged Green at Rs 25.2 crore, the highest-ever for an overseas player at an IPL auction.
Matheesha Pathirana: KKR’s second-biggest purchase of the day was Sri Lankan pacer Pathirana, snapped up for Rs 18 crore. Delhi Capitals opened the bidding at his Rs 2 crore base price, with the Lucknow Super Giants soon joining the contest.
Delhi bowed out at Rs 15.6 crore, after which KKR entered the fray. LSG made a final bid of Rs 17.8 crore, before Kolkata sealed the deal at Rs 18 crore.
Kartik Sharma: The first surprise pick of the IPL 2026 auction was Rajasthan wicketkeeper Kartik, who had marked his Ranji Trophy debut with a hundred. Mumbai Indians opened the bidding at his Rs 30 lakh base price, with the Lucknow Super Giants soon joining in.
MI bowed out at Rs 40 lakh, after which KKR entered the contest. LSG made a final bid of Rs 2.6 crore before exiting, paving the way for the Chennai Super Kings to join the fray.
KKR pulled out at Rs 12.8 crore, while the Sunrisers Hyderabad stayed in until Rs 14 crore. CSK sealed the deal at Rs 14.2 crore.
Prashant Veer: The much-talked-about ‘prospect’, 20-year-old Uttar Pradesh left-arm spin-bowling all-rounder Veer, who boasts a T20 strike rate of 167, was also snapped up by Chennai Super Kings. Lucknow Super Giants opened the bidding at his Rs 30 lakh base price, with Mumbai Indians soon joining in.
MI exited at Rs 1.1 crore, after which CSK entered the fray. LSG bowed out at Rs 4 crore, paving the way for Rajasthan Royals to join the contest. RR exited at Rs 6.4 crore, before Sunrisers Hyderabad pushed the price up to Rs 14 crore.
CSK sealed the deal, bagging Veer for Rs 14.2 crore.
Liam Livingstone: Regarded as one of the best buys of the night, England all-rounder Livingstone was snapped up in the final round of the accelerated auction. KKR opened the bidding at his Rs 2 crore base price, with the Sunrisers Hyderabad joining in early.
KKR bowed out at Rs 2.8 crore, after which the Gujarat Titans entered the contest. GT exited at Rs 4 crore, paving the way for the Lucknow Super Giants to step in. LSG made a final bid of Rs 12.8 crore before SRH sealed the deal at Rs 13 crore.
Mustafizur Rahman: The Bangladesh pacer emerged as another surprise pick after Kartik. Delhi Capitals opened the bidding at Rs 2 crore, with the Chennai Super Kings joining in early.
DC bowed out at Rs 5.2 crore, after which KKR entered the fray. CSK made a final bid of Rs 9 crore, before Kolkata sealed the deal at Rs 9.2 crore, bagging Rahman.
Josh Inglis: A 360-degree cricketer, the Aussie wicketkeeper attracted a hefty price at the auction. Sunrisers Hyderabad opened the bidding at his Rs 2 crore base price, with the Lucknow Super Giants joining the contest.
SRH bowed out at Rs 8.4 crore, after which LSG sealed the deal at Rs 8.6 crore, snapping up Inglis.
Auqib Nabi: Regarded as one of the best buys of the night, Jammu and Kashmir medium-pacer Nabi was snapped up in the opening round of the auction. Delhi Capitals opened the bidding at his Rs 30 lakh base price, with the Rajasthan Royals joining in early.
RR exited at Rs 95 lakh, after which the Royal Challengers Bengaluru entered the contest. RCB bowed out at Rs 1.9 crore, paving the way for the Sunrisers Hyderabad, who pushed the price to Rs 8.2 crore.
Delhi sealed the deal, bagging Nabi for Rs 8.4 crore.
Ravi Bishnoi: The star India leg-spinner was snapped up by the Rajasthan Royals on Tuesday. RR opened the bidding at Bishnoi’s Rs 2 crore base price, with the Chennai Super Kings joining the contest.
CSK bowed out at Rs 5.8 crore, after which the Sunrisers Hyderabad entered the fray. SRH exited at Rs 7 crore, permitting RR to seal the deal at Rs 7.2 crore.
Jason Holder: The star West Indies allrounder was picked up by the Gujarat Titans on Tuesday. Chennai Super Kings started the bid at Holder’s base price of Rs 2 crore and the Gujarat Titans joined in.
CSK’s final bid was Rs 6.8 crore and GT bagged Holder at Rs 7 crore.
