The IPL Auction 2026: A Team-by-Team Breakdown
It's that time again! The IPL auction is just around the corner, and teams are gearing up to strategize and build their dream squads. Let's dive into what each team needs to focus on to make a splash in the upcoming season. We'll start with the Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
Chennai Super Kings
Purse: ₹43.40 Cr | Slots Available: 9 | Overseas Slots: 4
Probable XII: Ayush Mhatre, Sanju Samson, Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Shivam Dube, Dewald Brevis, ALLROUNDER, ALLROUNDER/FINISHER, MS Dhoni (wk), Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Nathan Ellis, Khaleel Ahmed
Others in Squad: Urvil Patel, Gurjapneet Singh, Mukesh Choudhary, Ramakrishna Ghosh, Shreyas Gopal, Jamie Overton
What CSK Needs:
With a strong top order already in place, CSK's primary goal is to bolster their middle order. They traded away key all-rounders Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran to acquire Sanju Samson, creating a need for versatile players. They'll be looking for all-rounders with complementary skills: one who can bowl spin and another who can offer pace. A significant area of concern is their performance in the death overs last season, making it a priority to find players who can improve their run rate in those crucial moments. The need for incoming players to contribute with the ball adds another layer of complexity. With none of CSK's current bowlers known for their batting and only Shivam Dube providing secondary bowling, it's a challenge.
Releasing Matheesha Pathirana also means they must find an overseas pacer capable of bowling at the death to back up Nathan Ellis. Given the scarcity of quality bowlers in a mini-auction, a re-signing of the Sri Lankan quick is a possibility. With Jadeja's departure and R. Ashwin's retirement, CSK may additionally look for a finger spinner, as Shreyas Gopal remains their only reserve option. Armed with the second-largest purse, the franchise will back itself to secure most of its key targets.
Potential Targets: Cameron Green, Venkatesh Iyer, Liam Livingstone, Jason Holder, Michael Bracewell, Prashant Veer, Sunny Sandhu, Mustafizur Rahman
Sunrisers Hyderabad
Purse: ₹25.50 Cr | Slots Available: 10 | Overseas Slots: 2
Probable XII: Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan (wk), Heinrich Klaasen, Smaran Ravichandran, Nitish Reddy, Aniket Verma, Pat Cummins (c), Harsh Dubey, Harshal Patel, Eshan Malinga, DOMESTIC PACER
Others in Squad: Jaydev Unadkat, Zeeshan Ansari, Brydon Carse, Kamindu Mendis
What SRH Needs:
SRH made a bold move by releasing Mohammed Shami. Now, with Harshal Patel and Eshan Malinga specializing in the death overs, they need to invest in someone who can excel with the new ball. Their performance in the powerplay during the 2025 season was a major concern. They'll be looking to address this weakness.
While Smaran Ravichandran has shown rapid progress in domestic cricket, his place in the team will depend on how SRH performs in the auction. Having released Abhinav Manohar, Wiaan Mulder, Sachin Baby, and Atharva Taide, SRH will need backup domestic batters and could potentially use one of their overseas slots for a backup batter too for the likes of Travis Head and Heinrich Klaasen. The spin department seems well-covered, thanks to Zeeshan Ansari's performance and Harsh Dubey's emergence.
Potential Targets: Auqib Nabi, Akash Deep, Ashok Sharma, Sarfaraz Khan, Deepak Hooda, Mahipal Lomror, Kartik Sharma
Delhi Capitals
Purse: ₹21.80 Cr | Slots Available: 8 | Overseas Slots: 5
Probable XII: KL Rahul, Abishek Porel (wk), Nitish Rana, Karun Nair/Sameer Rizvi, Axar Patel (c), Tristan Stubbs, Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar, T. Natarajan
Others in Squad: Ajay Mandal, Madhav Tiwari, Tripurna Vijay, Dushmantha Chameera
What DC Needs:
DC has a solid core, retaining 17 players. They have room for improvement, starting with the possibility of a new opening pair. They used seven different opening pairs last season, the most by any team in 2025. With five overseas slots available, DC might opt for an established player to pair up with KL Rahul. Capitals often played with just three overseas players in their XII in IPL 2025 and could add another experienced fast bowler this time given T Natarajan's fitness concerns. Their pacers have historically struggled at death and that could prompt them looking for an overseas quick to bowl alongside Mitchell Starc. Once these two boxes are ticked, DC might also have an overseas spot to pick up a backup middle order batter for Tristan Stubbs.
Potential Targets: Quinton de Kock, Pathum Nissanka, Jamie Smith, Jonny Bairstow, Matheesha Pathirana, Matt Henry, Mustafizur Rahman
Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Purse: ₹16.40 Cr | Slots Available: 8 | Overseas Slots: 2
Probable XII: Phil Salt, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (c), Tim David, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Krunal Pandya, Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma, Yash Dayal
Others in Squad: Rasikh Dar, Abhinandan Singh, Swapnil Singh, Jacob Bethell, Nuwan Thushara
What RCB Needs:
The defending champions have a settled core. This auction will be more or less about finding some backups for key positions. Josh Hazlewood's injury concerns will force RCB to use one of their two available overseas slots for a fast bowler with a similar profile despite the presence of Nuwan Thushara. Yash Dayal hasn't played a competitive game post the IPL final this year. Even though he has been retained, RCB might need a domestic left-arm seamer if Dayal becomes unavailable. Considering they released Mayank Agarwal, Manoj Bhandage, and Swastik Chikara, RCB do not have backup Indian batters in their squad.
Potential Targets: Lungi Ngidi, Alzarri Joseph, Taskin Ahmed, Spencer Johnson, Sarfaraz Khan, Deepak Hooda
Punjab Kings
Purse: ₹11.50 Cr | Slots Available: 4 | Overseas Slots: 2
Probable XII: Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Priyansh Arya, Shreyas Iyer (c), Nehal Wadhera, Mitchell Owen, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Harpreet Brar, Arshdeep Singh, Lockie Ferguson, Yuzvendra Chahal
Others in Squad: Vyshak Vijaykumar, Musheer Khan, Harnoor Pannu, Pyla Avinash, Suryansh Shedge, Vishnu Vinod, Yash Thakur, Azmatullah Omarzai, Xavier Bartlett
What PBKS Needs:
No team has retained more players than Punjab Kings. With only four slots available, the 2025 runners-up can back themselves to nail their first choice picks given they have a little over INR 11 crore in the purse. With four top-class overseas allrounders in their squad, PBKS can either use three of them in their XII every game or swap one of them out for an overseas batter who could play those impactful innings Josh Inglis did for them in 2025. In all likelihood, that option could be a wicketkeeper too. While they have Xavier Bartlett, PBKS could still push for another overseas pacer as a backup for Lockie Ferguson. The New Zealand pacer's injury record in recent times is well documented. Similarly, they could also add a backup for Yuzvendra Chahal given the lack of spin options in the squad.
Potential Targets: Shai Hope, Jonny Bairstow, Matt Henry, Anrich Nortje, Rahul Chahar, Ravi Bishnoi, Vignesh Puthur
What do you think? Which team has the best strategy going into the auction? Which picks do you think will be the most impactful? Let us know in the comments below!
