The IPL Governing council has set 31st October 2024 for the teams to decide on the retentions before the IPL 2025 auction cut off the period for the retentions. The guidelines that were given by the governing council on Saturday give the franchises the option of retaining not more than six players through a mixture of direct retention and right to match(RTM) options. This allows for not more than five capped (including both Indian and foreign players) and two uncapped Indian players only as per the rules outlined by ESPN Cricinfo. For purposes of this retention, any cricketer above the age of 19 who plays their first game for their national side at any point in time within the year before the year ending on the thirty first day of October will be called capped. An uncapped player who is a member of the team , and who takes up international position after the auction in question has taken place will not be capped before the player comes into the team for the auction but will have INR 4 Crore off the team and hence this player will also be excluded in the calculations.
The global auction figure has been slashed to INR 120 Crore (approximately USD 14.3 million) for each Franchise with the growing limit of INR 20 Crore.
As was done for the mega auction before IPL 2022, the cost of retaining uncapped Players has been held at INR 4 Crores. Moreover, the IPL has reintroduced a provision which was thrown out in 2021, carrying stipulation which allows any Indian players who had not participated in the international matches for at least five years before the corresponding season to take part in the auction as an uncapped player. With this amendment, Chennai Super Kings can hold on to skipper MS Dhoni, who was last seen in an international match during his side’s campaign at the 2019 ODI World Cup.
As it concerns the Impact Player, the IPL continues to apply since it was first introduced in the year 2023. This rule, which allows a team to replace a first-XI player with a designated batter or bowler depending upon the circumstances of the match, has been the subject of much controversy regarding its effect on Indian cricket and the evolution of all-rounders.
At the meeting of team owners and principals held on July 31, a majority of the franchises were in favor of the rule remaining. The IPL, to further support the rule, noted that ‘9 out of 10 highest scores in the history of the tournament have come in the periods after the Impact Player rule was introduced.’ The IPL feels artistic elements in matches would have increased due to this rule thereby making the games more interesting to the audience.
