IPL Auction: Prithvi Shaw, Sarfaraz Khan's IPL exile ends; Cameron Green makes history, uncapped Indians rise and shine

IPL Auction LIVE: KKR dominates early proceedings with ₹48.8 crore spent across six acquisitions, highlighted by Cameron Green's record ₹25.2 crore deal. CSK follows with ₹30.4 crore invested in three premium picks, averaging ₹10.13 crore per player—the tournament's highest. Delhi Capitals ( ₹12.4cr), RCB ( ₹9cr), and Rajasthan Royals ( ₹8.7cr) round out the top five spenders. Notably, PBKS remains inactive with their entire ₹11.5 crore purse intact, while the Mumbai Indians have barely participated ( ₹1cr spent). With 289 players still unsold, teams retain significant firepower for subsequent rounds. KKR and DC lead overseas recruitment with three and two internationals, respectively.on LIVE:

IPL Auction LIVE: CSK's auction gamble saw uncapped Indian talents Prashant Veer and Kartik Sharma skyrocket from INR 30 lakh base to INR 14.20 crore - a staggering 47.3x multiplier, the highest in IPL 2026. Delhi Capitals' Auqib Nabi followed with a 28x jump (INR 30L to INR 8.4 cr). KKR's Cameron Green, despite commanding the auction's highest absolute price (INR 25.2 cr), registered a "modest" 12.6x increase due to his INR 2 crore base. These astronomical multipliers underscore franchises' desperation for emerging Indian talent, with uncapped players offering value and flexibility. The trend reveals teams prioritising potential over proven pedigree, banking on breakout performances.

IPL Auction LIVE: Prashant Veer. Kartik Sharma. Auqib Nabi. These are hardly household names in their own state, let alone the country, yet they are the three who attracted the highest bids among Indian players in the first round of the mini auction. The emergence of this uncapped trio highlights two significant factors: 1) The mushrooming of T20 leagues across the nation and, 2) The robust talent scouting mechanisms that have been put in place by all franchises.

Prashant and Kartik are both 20-year-olds who were snapped up by Chennai Super Kings, historically conservative when it comes to young, relatively unknown Indians, for ₹14.2 crore each, the joint highest for an uncapped player in IPL history. Nabi, much older at 29, went for ₹8.4 crore to Delhi Capitals. Right now, for this bunch of players, this might seem like an end in itself, but when the excitement settles down and when it’s time to confront reality, they will understand that this is just the beginning – more so for the 20-year-olds than for Nabi.

Amethi-born Prashant has played just two first-class games and nine T20 matches, but in the left-arm spinner and the hard-hitting left-hand batter, CSK see a long-term replacement for Ravindra Jadeja, traded to Rajasthan Royals. Apart from 12 wickets at an economy of 6.45, Prashant has scored at 167.16 per 100 balls faced in representative 20-over cricket. He came to prominence at the UP T20 league with 320 runs and eight wickets in 10 outings.

Kartik, who is also very competent behind the stumps, has smacked 28 sixes in 12 T20s and in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy tournament, the Rajasthan youngster went after the experienced spin duo of left-armer R Sai Kishore (Tamil Nadu) and Shreyas Gopal (Karnataka). Last season, he trained with the CSK outfit and clearly impressed the men who matter, primary among them a certain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Other uncapped Indians too were in demand. Wicketkeeper-batters Mukul Choudhary and Tejasvi Singh were sold for ₹2.6 crore and ₹3 crore to Lucknow Super Giants and Kolkata Knight Riders respectively, LSG shelled out a cool ₹1 crore for pacer Naman Tiwari, and Ashok Sharma and Sushant Mishra, also fast bowlers, went for ₹90 lakh each to Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals respectively.

IPL Auction LIVE: The Base Price vs Final Price analysis reveals the auction's most dramatic value appreciation stories. Cameron Green's meteoric rise from a ₹2 crore base to ₹25.2 crore (12.6x increase) after 117 bids epitomizes the fierce competition. Matheesha Pathirana ( ₹18cr) and the duo of Kartik Sharma and Prashant Veer ( ₹14.2cr each) similarly skyrocketed from modest base prices. The scatter plot's red diagonal line represents price parity—every dot positioned above it signals premium buying. Larger circles indicate more competitive bidding wars, with the visualisation clearly demonstrating how franchises aggressively pursued key targets, often paying astronomical premiums over starting prices to secure their desired players.

IPL Auction LIVE: Vignesh Puthur is next in line, and after a brief pause, Rajasthan Royals make a bid for him to sign him for INR 30 Lakh. Karn Sharma and Kumar Kartikeya also get unsold.

IPL Auction LIVE: Akash Madhwal goes unsold, while Sushant Mishra gets the attention of the Rajasthan Royals and Delhi Capitals. Sushant joins RR for INR 90 Lakh

IPL Auction LIVE: Simarjeet Singh enters the auction but finds no buyers. Naman Tiwari gets the bid from Delhi Capitals and Rajasthan Royals follow them in the process. Lucknow challenge Royals for Tiwari here and sign him for INR 1 crore

IPL Auction LIVE: Raj Limbani goes unsold, while Kartik Tyagi gets KKR's attention as he joins them for INR 30 Lakh.

IPL Auction LIVE: Ashok Sharma enters the auction and ignites a bidding war between CSK and KKR. The two former champions are fighting it out for him and RR also enter the race. CSK have backed out while KKR and RR pushing hard to sign him. GT have finally raised their paddle in the auction - probably the second or third player. Titans have signed him for INR 90 Lakh.

IPL Auction LIVE: Vansh Bedi goes unsold while Tushar Raheja also joins him in the unwanted list.

IPL Auction LIVE: Tejasvi Singh has entered the auction, and a bidding war begins between MI and KKR. He also joins the crorepati list with the Royals joining the bidding war. KKR have signed him for INR 3 crore.

IPL Auction LIVE: Mukul Choudhary is going under the hammer, and a bidding war begins between RR and MI to sign him. He has become a crorepati, and LSG has entered the race after MI withdrew from the race. LSG sign him for INR 2.8 crore

IPL Auction LIVE: Ruchit Ahir unsold, while Kartik Sharma gets the attention from MI and LSG here. KKR also join the party here and engages in a bidding war with LSG. Kartik has also hit a jackpot by breaching the INR 2 crore mark here. KKR are currently leading the race with an INR 2.8 crore bid, and Chennai Super Kings have also joined the race, and they crossed the INR 5 crore mark in a jiffy.

A dreamy day for Kartik as he has crossed the INR 10-crore mark. The bidding war is getting heated up now with SRH entering the race after KKR backed out. However, CSK have signed him for INR 14.2 crore.

IPL Auction LIVE: It was always on the cards that Auqib Nabi would attract great attention but even he would have been surprised at how fierce a war the franchises waged to secure his services. The uncapped all-rounder entered the fray at his base price of ₹30 lakh and walked away with a cool ₹8.4 crore, after Delhi Capitals staved off stiff competition.

Nabi is no newcomer; he made his first-class debut for Jammu and Kashmir nearly six years back and at 29 is a semi-veteran, having played 99 representative matches for his state and for North Zone. But it’s only of late that he has started to make people sit up and take notice of his all-round skills, but mainly his ability to swing the new ball. From Baramullah to the Arun Jaitley Stadium is a huge step up for Nabi, who has started to bowl well with the older ball too.

It had been a wonderful season already for Nabi before the auction. In J&K’s first five matches in the Ranji Trophy, he has picked up 29 wickets and has had a good run in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy inter-state T20 competition as well. Primarily recognised as a bowler, Nabi is no mug with the bat either, though there is no guessing why he has been picked by the Capitals.

IPL Auction LIVE: Tanush Kotian, Kamlesh Nagarkoti and Sanvir Singh fail to find any buyers in the round as they joined the unwanted list.

IPL Auction LIVE: Shivang Kumar going under the hammer and Sunrisers Hyderabad sign him for INR 30 Lakh - his base price.

IPL Auction LIVE: Prashant Veer is going under the hammer, and LSG raise the paddle while the Mumbai Indians have joined the race. With LSG making a bid of 1.2 crore, MI has backed out, and CSK has joined the race. He has also hit the jackpot here with a bid exceeding INR 4 crore mark. Rajasthan Royals have joined the race now, and they have decided to go to war with CSK for him. 6 crores crossed for Prashant Veer.

RR backed out, and SRH have joined the race, and he has breached the INR 8 crore mark here. He has really hit the jackpot here by crossing the INR 12 crore. Things are getting intense with SRH making an INR 14 crore bid, but Chennai Super Kings sign him for INR 14.20 crore.

IPL Auction LIVE: Vijay Shankar, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Eden Tom and Mahipal Lomror join the unwanted list for now as they failed to find any bidders in the room.

IPL Auction LIVE: Auqib Dar is going under the hammer now and Delhi Capitals have raised the paddle for INR 30 Lakh. Rajasthan Royals have also entered the race. The bidding war begins here. RR have pulled out, and RCB have joined DC in the bidding war.

He has breached the INR 2 crore mark now, and RCB are out of it with SRH, the new entrant to sign him.

The war between SRH and DC continues, and he has now breached the INR 5 crore mark. He is hitting the jackpot here with 7 crore crossing the mark. Delhi Capitals, the first bidder, signed him for INR 8.4 crore.

IPL Auction LIVE: Seven nations have featured in the initial auction proceedings, with Australian players commanding premium valuations at ₹25.2 crores average through Cameron Green's blockbuster signing. Sri Lankan duo Matheesha Pathirana and Wanindu Hasaranga contributed ₹20 crores combined spending. Indian contingent saw Ravi Bishnoi and Venkatesh Iyer fetch ₹14.2 crores total. South Africa led in player count with three signings (Miller, Nortje, De Kock) totaling ₹5 crores. New Zealand's Finn Allen and Jacob Duffy secured ₹4 crores combined, while England's Ben Duckett and West Indies' Akeal Hosein rounded off international representation at ₹2 crores each.

IPL Auction LIVE: “Hey, KKR fans. It's Cameron Green here. I'm so excited to be a part of Kolkata for this year's IPL. To get down to the Eden Gardens, to get used to that atmosphere. I hope it's a great year for us. So, see you soon. Ami KKR,” Green reacts after joining KKR.

IPL Auction LIVE: The purse meter instantly shows who can bully the room and who must shop smart. CSK are sitting pretty with ₹41.40 cr left after just one buy, while SRH haven’t spent yet and still hold ₹25.50 cr. KKR have already thrown the first punch— ₹45.20 cr spent—yet still retain ₹19.10 cr, meaning they’re not done. LSG ( ₹18.95 cr) and DC ( ₹17.80 cr) are steady mid-table buyers. GT ( ₹12.90 cr) and PBKS ( ₹11.50 cr) stay flexible. RR ( ₹8.85 cr) and RCB ( ₹7.40 cr) are tightening. MI are nearly tapped out at ₹1.75 cr, so it’s bargain-hunting now for them, unless they offload.

IPL Auction LIVE: Mumbai Indians head coach Mahela Jayawardene couldn’t hide his satisfaction after securing Quinton de Kock, stressing the value of familiarity and balance as he explained why MI were keen to add depth and flexibility at the top of the order.

“We were lucky (laughs). Quinny was part of MI in most of the franchises and also in the past. Wanted to ensure we have depth in that crucial spot at the top of the order. Gives us flexibility in the playing XI,” Mahela Jayawardene said.

IPL Auction LIVE: Identified by Mahendra Singh Dhoni and living up to his lofty billing for the first two years, Matheesha Pathirana has had a forgettable last couple of seasons, so he must have been delighted at having been snapped up for ₹18 crore by Kolkata Knight Riders. The 22-year-old Sri Lankan has used primarily at the death by CSK because of his ability to direct his yorkers with pinpoint accuracy with a slinging action and for his wonderful changes of pace, but after playing just six games in the 2024 season due to injury, he took only 13 wickets in 12 matches last season at a very high economy of 10.13 runs per over.

Plagued by injuries and struggling for control as he kept drifting wide down the leg-side, Pathirana hasn’t impressed with the national team either. Having let go of several quicks after the last season, KKR went all out for his services, overcoming strong challenges from Delhi Capitals and Lucknow Super Giants. It’s anyone’s guess whether Pathirana is worth the purse at this stage, given his recent travails with form and fitness. The consensus is that he has hit a jackpot; it is up to him to prove that that is well deserved.

IPL Auction LIVE: Atharva Taide, Anmolpreet Singh, Abhinav Tej Rana and Abhinav Manohar fail to find any attention from any franchise owners. India's U-19 World Cup winning skipper Yash Dhull also remain unsold. Aarya Desai the last name in this list also join the unwanted list here.