A couple of top criceters have put forth demand of up to Rs 40 crore to be retained by their franchise ahead of IPL 2028 mega auction next year.
Published: November 6, 2026, 11:25 AM IST
Share Article
https://www.india.com/sports/cricket/star-cricketers-put-up-massive-demand-of-rs-400000000-for-ipl-retention-before-mega-auction-8542667/
Top cricketers are demanding as much as Rs 40 crore for IPL retention before IPL 2028(Image: AI)
The Indian Premier League (IPL) is set to get another massive reset as the mega auction is set to return next yearThe IPL 2028 mega auction is scheduled to take place next year where all 10 franchises will only be allowed to possibly retain only 4 players from their existing squadBut the bigger question is how much will some of the star cricketers like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill and Jasprit Bumrah to be retained by their exiting teams.
According to a report in Cricbuzz website, some of the ‘top tier’ players have already started quoting as much as Rs 40 crore to be retained by their respective franchiseJust for context, Kavya Maran’s Sunrisers Hyderabad paid the highest retention amount of Rs 23 crore for South African Heinrich Klaasen ahead of IPL 2025 mega auction.
The report adds that at least a couple of cricketers have put forth this massive demand and informed their franchises that they will be willing to stay on if their demands are metIt is also being speculated that more players can join this list if they feel that they can get more than their retention salary by going into the auction.
IPL SALARY OF 40CR FOR INDIANS⁉️
– Some of India’s top-tier players in the IPL have quoted 40cr INR as their desired retention fee.
A couple of players conveyed this to their team that they would be willing to stay on only if they are paid that amount(Cricbuzz)https://t.co/NhZJ33gOLE
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) November 5, 2026
Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer got massive amounts at IPL 2025 mega auction
Indian cricketers Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer set the precedent by setting off a bidding war at IPL 2025 mega auctionWhile Sanjiv Goenka’s Lucknow Super Giants bought Pant for Rs 27 crore, Preity Zinta’s Punjab Kings got Iyer for Rs 26.75 crore.
However, Pant was traded off to Delhi Capitals in just a couple of years for Rs 15 crore, a salary cut of Rs 12 crore after failing to perform as LSG skipperIyer, on the other hand, guided PBKS to the IPL 2025 final but just failed to reach the Playoffs in IPL 2026 earlier this year.
The Cricbuzz website record speculated that the total auction purse per team could be in the range of Rs 150 crore, up from Rs 120 crore in IPL 2025 mega auction.
“For franchises with multiple marquee players to retain, accommodating such demands could be difficultThe eventual numbers will depend, among other things, on the purse available for the mega auctionAlthough no formal discussions have taken place on the matter yet, the purse is expected to be around Rs 150 crore next year,” the Cricbuzz report stated.
The IPL team purse was Rs 60 crore in 2014, went up to Rs 80 crore in 2018, Rs 90 crore in 2022 and Rs 120 crore in 2025 and will be Rs 130 crore in the IPL 2027 mini auction on December 16 in Goa.
“The final retention calculations will also depend on the BCCI’s retention slabsFor the previous mega auction, the prescribed slabs were Rs 18 crore, Rs 14 crore and Rs 11 croreHowever, franchises were allowed to pay players more than the prescribed amounts, provided they declared the actual figures,” the website stated.
The IPL 2027 Retention Day has been pushed back by a couple of day and will now be on November 17, around one month before the auction.
