The season 5 player auction for ILT20 2026 is set to take place at the ICC Cricket Academy in Dubai on ThursdayOnly one Indian cricketer is part of this auction.
Published: September 29, 2026, 5:12 PM IST
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Murugan Ashwin turned out for Punjab Kings in three seasons of IPL(Photo: IANS)
ILT20 2026 Player Auction: The player auction for the fifth season of International League (ILT20) is set to take place at the ICC Academy Indoors in Dubai on Thursday, October 1Over 400 cricketers, including 200 from 23 different countries ar set to go under the hammer but one of them will be an Indian – former Tamil Nadu leg-spinner Murugan Ashwin.
The 36-year-old from Chennai didn’t play for India in any format of the game but was part of the Indian Premier League (IPL) for seven seasonAshwin will join top cricketers like Pakistan’s Babar Azam, Phil Salt, Tom Banton, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Wanindu Hasaranga, Alzarri Joseph, Faf du Plessis and Liam Livingstone at the ILT20 2026 Player Auction this week.
Murugan Ashwin announced his retirement from domestic and IPL on May 25 this yearHe was part of Preity Zinta’s Punjab Kings from IPL 2019 to IPL 2021 seasonApart from that he also turned out for Rising Pune Super Giants, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Mumbai Indians and Rajasthan Royals in his final season in IPL 2023.
He claimed 35 wickets in 44 matches in his Indian Premier League career at an average of 33.2Overall, he picked up 115 wickets in 117 T20 matches in his career at an impressive average of 25.38.
JUST IN : Murugan Ashwin is the ONLY Indian among 400+ players set to go under the hammer at the ILT20 Player Auction on October 1 @cricbuzz pic.twitter.com/IPqZhqSi6c
— TheWicketReport (@WicketReport) September 29, 2026
Babar Azam has base price of $80,000
Players for the ILT20 player auction have been grouped into price slabs of $80,000, $40,000 and $10,000The $80,000 bracket includes T20 big guns like Babar Azam, Phil Salt (represented Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in Season 4), Tom Banton (represented MI Emirates in Season 4), David Willey (represented Dubai Capitals in Season 4), Fakhar Zaman (represented Desert Vipers in Season 4), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (represented Gulf Giants in Season 4), Usman Tariq (represented Desert Vipers in Season 4), Jonny Bairstow (represented MI Emirates in Season 4), Moeen Ali (represented Gulf Giants in Season 4), Liam Livingstone (represented Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in Season 4), Alzarri Joseph, Wanindu Hasaranga, Faf du Plessis, Taskin Ahmed (represented Sharjah Warriorz in Season 4), Alex Hales (represented Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in Season 4), Naseem Shah (represented Desert Vipers in Season 4), Sahibzada Farhan, Fazalhaq Farooqi (represented MI Emirates in Season 4), Chris Woakes (represented MI Emirates in Season 4) and Dasun Shanaka (represented Dubai Capitals in Season 4).
The $40,000 category is a blend of some of the most exciting T20 talent and richly experienced performers like Jayden Seales, Ibrahim Zadran, Shadab Khan, Tabraiz Shamsi (represented Gulf Giants in Season 4), Avishka Fernando, Hassan Nawaz (represented Desert Vipers in Season 4), Shoriful Islam, Maaz Sadaqat, Kusal Perera, Gulbadin Naib (represented Dubai Capitals in Season 4), Chris Green, Andre Fletcher (represented MI Emirates in Season 4) and Hunain Shah.
The $10,000 category will be pivotal for the teams in terms of shaping their Season 5 squadsThe category includes Will Smeed, Lorcan Tucker (represented Gulf Giants in Season 4), Asa Tribe, Shayan Jahangir (represented Dubai Capitals in Season 4), Reeza Hendricks, Mehidy Hassan Miraz, Ish Sodhi, George Munsey, Matt Potts, Bas De Leede and Tanzim Hasan Sakib.
Teams are permitted to use one ‘Right to Match’ option (RTM) on a UAE player that either played for them in ILT20 Season 4 or played for their team in the recently concluded ILT20 Development TournamentEach franchise will enter the auction with a purse of $1.3 million plus any remaining amount from the $700,000 allocated earlier for Pre-Auction Signings.
MI Emirates enter the auction with the largest purse at $1,390,000Abu Dhabi Knight Riders follow with $1,365,000Desert Vipers and Gulf Giants have $1,305,000 each in their kitty while Dubai Capitals and Sharjah Warriorz have fully utilised their $700,000 Pre-Auction Signings allocation, which means that they will enter the auction with $1.3 million each.
