IPL 2025 player retention rules: All you need to know ahead of deadline

As the deadline for IPL 2025 player retention approaches, excitement among fans grows as they await announcements of their favourite teams. In a flexible retention policy, each franchise is permitted to retain up to six players from their 2024 squads through direct retentions and Right-to-Match cards. This combination will help franchises maintain a stable core without compromising the potential to reassemble their squad at the upcoming mega auction that is set to follow closely on the heels of the Diwali season.

The retention rules of the IPL also have defined slabs for capped and uncapped players. A team can retain its first capped player at a deduction of ₹18 crore, and the second, third, and fifth capped players at deductions of ₹14 crore and ₹11 crore, respectively. Uncapped players are pegged at ₹4 crore each, giving the franchises the flexibility to retain promising talent while managing their purses effectively. However, if the team decides to pay the player less than the slab value, the deduction is for the capped amount so that no advantage is derived from changing retention salaries.

What’s interesting is that there’s no cap on the number of foreign players a team can retain, and therefore franchises can focus on overseas talent if they want. The reason for this provision is that franchises can get the best international talent without taking into consideration the quota as per nationality, provided that they fall within the permissible deduction limits. As stated in the IPL rules, players who have not played at least one international match, or Indian players who did not play in the XI in the last five seasons, are considered uncapped.

Retention decisions will set the tone for both the auction and the following season with many big names looking to either move to an auction or stay with their franchise. Ahead of Diwali, the fans wait for which of the players are going to be core to their respective teams and which ones come onto the market for a 2025 mega-auction promising one of the most exciting and competitive IPL seasons yet.