The 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) megaa auction proved to a record-breaking affair as a stunning tally of Rs. 639.15 crore was spent by the 10 franchises in a bid to overhaul their squad with a new cylce set to begin from the 18th edition. As many as three players earned more than Rs. 20 crore with Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant becoming the two highest-paid players in the history of the competition.
Venkatesh Iyer's Rs. 23.75 crore bid was the biggest suprise of the day but likes of Jos Buttler, KL Rahul, Trent Boult, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj among others also enjoyed a big pay day.
Now the action will shift to the pitch when the league resumes in March as each franchise will aim to lift the title. So how do squads shape up ahead of the 2025 seasons. See our rating here
Report Card Of All 10 Teams At IPL 2025 Auction.
Mumbai Indians:
Full Squad:
Batters: Suryakumar Yadav (retained), Rohit Sharma (retained), Tilak Varma (retained), Bevan-John Jacobs
Wicketkeepers: Robin Minz, Ryan Rickelton, Krishnan Shrijith
Allrounders: Hardik Pandya (retained), Naman Dhir (RTM), Will Jacks, Raj Angad Bawa, Vignesh Puthur
Spinners: Allah Ghazanfar, Karn Sharma, Mitchell Santner
Fast bowlers: Jasprit Bumrah (retained), Deepak Chahar, Trent Boult, Ashwani Kumar, Reece Topley, Satyanarayana Raju, Arjun Tendulkar, Lizaad Williams
Strenghts: Having retained a strong core, Mumbai Indians (MI) came into the auction in a comfortable position and were extremley quiet for most part of the two days. The franchise signed Allah Ghazanfar and Mitchell Santner to booster their spin attack, which has been an area of weakness for years while picking up Trent Boult and Deepak Chahar in the pace department. From a dynamic batting unit to a deadly bowling line-up, the MI team has almost all bases covered.
Weakness: The wicket-keeper batter area is a position, MI could struggle is as they have gambled on two players, who have never played an IPL match. South Africa Ryan Rickleton or uncapped Robin Minz will have to fill in and have big responsibilties on their shoulders.
Likely Playing XII: Rohit Sharma, Will Jacks, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya (C), Naman Dhir, Robin Minz (WK), Mitchell Santner, Allah Ghaznfar, Deepak Chahar, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah
Rating – 9/10
Delhi Capitals
Full Squad:
Batters: Jake Fraser-McGurk (RTM), Harry Brook, Tristan Stubbs (retained), Faf du Plessis, Karun Nair
Wicketkeepers: KL Rahul, Abishek Porel (retained), Donovan Ferreria
Allrounders: Axar Patel (retained), Ashutosh Sharma, Sameer Rizvi, Darshan Nalkande, Vipraj Nigam, Ajay Mandal , Manvanth Kumar Tripurana Vijay, Madhav Tiwari
Spinners: Kuldeep Yadav (retained)
Fast bowlers: Mitchell Starc, Mukesh Kumar, T Natarajan, Mohit Sharma, Dushmantha Chameera
Strenghts: Despite losing Rishabh Pant and missing out on priority target Shreyas Iyer, the Delhi Capitals (DC) have managed to build a squad that is brimming with quality. With the return of Jake Fraser-Mcgurk and Harry Brook and arrival of KL Rahul, the Capitals have a batting unit which no all but bases covered with an aggresive openers, anchor, and hard-hitting finishers.
Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel are among th finest spinners in the world while Mitchell Starc will lead a pace attack with top Indian performers in Mukesh Kumar, T Natarajan, and Mohit Sharma.
Weakness:The Capitals clearly had plans to make Shreyas as their captain but now face a question mark over the role. While KL Rahul presents an obvious choice, the 32-year-old has struggled to bat at his optimal best with the leadership role and nor has his captaincy brought success to Punjab Kings or Lucknow Super Giants. Faf du Plessis’ is a natural captaincy choice in the mix but accomodating him in the playing XI will be a challenge. Axar Patel could emerge as a dark horse for the role but his leadership accumen is untested.
Strongest Playing XII: Jake Fraser-Mcgurk, KL Rahul Abhishek Porel (WK), Harry Brook, Trisan Stubbs, Axar Patel, Ashutosh Sharma, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar, Mohit Sharma, T Natarajan
Rating – 9/10
Gujarat Titans:
Full Squad:
Batters: Shubman Gill (retained), Sai Sudharsan (retained), Rahul Tewatia (retained), Sherfane Rutherford
Wicketkeepers: Jos Buttler, Kumar Kushagra, Anuj Rawat
Allrounders: Rashid Khan ( retained), Washington Sundar, M Shahrukh Khan, Mahipal Lomror, Nishant Sindhu, Arshad Khan, Jayant Yadav, Glenn Phillips, Karim Janat
Spinners: Manav Suthar, Sai Kishore
Fast bowlers: Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Gerald Coetzee, Gurnoor Brar, Ishant Sharma, Kulwant Khejroliya
Strenghts: Gujarat Titans (GT) in their typical low-key manner managed to build a squad which looks formidable all across the board. However, their strenght lies in a star-studded pace attack which includes South African stars Kagiso Rabada and Gerald Coetzee and is backed by top Indian fastbowlers like Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, and Ishant Sharma. With Rashid Khan, Washington Sundar, Manav Suthar and Sai Kishore, their spin attack is as good as any across the league.
Weakness: While the Titans have arguably the strongest opening pair in Jos Buttler and Shubman Gill and a solid number three in Sai Sudharsan, the middle order lacks a reliable name, whom the franchise can bank on for consistent returns. The 2022 champions will need somone to raise their celiing this season.
Likely Playing XII: Shubman Gill (C), Jos Buttler, Sai Sudharsan, Glenn Phillips, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Washington Sundar, Rashid Khan, Gerald Coetze Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Kagiso Rabada
Rating Card – 8.75/10
Kolkata Knight Riders:
Full Squad:
Batters: Rinku Singh (retained), Rovman Powell, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Manish Pandey, Luvnith Sisodia, Ajinkya Rahane
Wicketkeepers: Quinton de Kock, Rahmanullah Gurbaz
Allrounders: Venkatesh Iyer (pace), Andre Russell (pace), Sunil Narine (spin), Ramandeep Singh (pace), Anukul Roy, Moeen Ali
Spinners: Varun Chakravarthy (retained), Mayank Markande
Fast bowlers: Harshit Rana (retained), Vaibhav Arora, Anrich Nortje, Spencer Johnson, Umran Malik
Strenghts: The defending champions managed to reunite most of their title-winning squad from last season with nine of the the 11 players that played the final back with the team.Phil Salt, Mitchell Starc, and Nitish Rana will be the only key players missing from their incredible campaign in 2024. The Knight have top quality options in every department but their with a spin unit consisting Varun Chakarvarthy and Sunil Narine will be the envy of every team in the league.
Weakness:While the pace attack is filled with talent, it lacks a talisman with experience. Anrich Nortje has blown hot and cold in recent times while Spencer Johnson is yet to establish himself at the highest level. They have three talented Indian names in the pace unit, but each of Harshit Rana, Vaibhav Arora, and Umran Malik is still young. There is no reliable death overs bowler in their ranks, which could put Andre Russell with a heavy workload once again.
Another big problem area will be the captaincy afte Shreyas Iyer's exit and the Knight Riders will either have to take a punt on an unproven Indian leader or pick an overseas skipper.
Strongest Playing XII: Ramanullah Gurbaz, Sunil Narine, Venaktesh Iyer, Angrish Raghuvanshi, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Vaibhav Arora, Spencer Johson, Umran Malik
Rating – 8.5/10
Chennai Super Kings
Full Squad:
Batters: Ruturaj Gaikwad (retained), Rahul Tripathi, Shaik Rasheed, Deepak Hooda, Andre Siddarth
Wicketkeepers: Devon Conway, MS Dhoni (retained), Vansh Bedi
Allrounders: Ravindra Jadeja (retained), Shivam Dube retained), R Ashwin, Sam Curran, Rachin Ravindra (RTM), Vijay Shankar, Anshul Kamboj, Jamie Overton, Ramakrishna Ghosh
Spinners: Noor Ahmad, Shreyas Gopal
Fast bowlers: Matheesha Pathirana (retained), Khaleel Ahmed, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Mukesh Choudhary, Gurjapneet Singh, Nathan Ellis
Strenghts: With the big money investments on Ravichandran Ashwin's return and signing Noor Ahmed, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have a spin bowling unit which can give any team a run for their money. With tracks at Chepauk expected to offer turn, away games against the Ruturaj Gaikwad-led side could turn into a nightmare for opponets.
Weakness: At the age of 43, MS Dhoni remains the team’s only experienced specialist wicket-keeper batter as well as finisher with the bat. Apart frm Shivam Dube, CSK’s middle order lacks a dynamic batter, who can accelerate and bat at a higher strike-rate with ease.
Strongest Playng XII: Ruturaj Gaiwkad (C), Devon Conway, Rahul Tripathi, Shivam Dube, Vijay Shankar, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni (WK), Sam Curran, Ravichandran Ashwin, Noor Ahmed, Khaleel Ahmed, Matheesha Pathirana
Rating – 8.5/10
Sunrisers Hyderabad
Full Squad:
Batters: Travis Head (retained), Abhinav Manohar, Aniket Verma, Sachin Baby
Wicketkeepers: Heinrich Klaasen (retained), Ishan Kishan, Atharva Taide
Allrounders: Abhishek Sharma (retained), Nitish Kumar Redd (retained), Kamindu Mendis
Spinners: Adam Zampa, Rahul Chahar, Zeeshan Ansari
Fast bowlers: Mohammed Shami, Pat Cummins (retained), Harshal Patel, Simarjeet Singh, Jaydev Unadkat, Brydon Carse, Eshan Malinga
Strenghts: After retaining Travis Head, Heinrich Klaasen, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Abhishek Sharma, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) continue to possess the most destructive batting unit in the league and the signing of Ishan Kishan adds more dynamism. The pace attack consisting of Pat Cummins has been further boosted by Mohammed Shami’s arrival.
Weakness: Rahul Chahar and Adam Zampa offer SRH quality spin bowling option but both have a point to prove in the IPL. Chahar has struggled for consistency since leaving Mumbai Indians (MI) while Zampa has never got a consistent run of games in the IPL despite being arguably the best white-ball spinner of the generation.
The number six and seven spots in the batting unit are an area of concern with no proven name in the set-up, which will put pressure on the top order.
Strongest Playing XII: Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (WK),Heinrich Klaasen, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Abhinav Manohar, Sachin Baby, Pat Cummins, Rahul Chahar, Adam Zampa, Mohammed Shami, Jaydev Unadkat
Rating: 8/10
Rajasthan Royals
Full Squad
Batters: Yashasvi Jaiswal (retained), Shimron Hetmyer (retained), Shubham Dubey, Vaibhav Suryavanshi
Wicketkeepers: Sanju Samson (retained), Dhruv Jurel (retained), Kunal Singh Rathore
Allrounders: Riyan Parag (retained), Nitish Rana, Yudhvir Singh
Spinners: Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Kumar Kartikeya
Fast bowlers: Jofra Archer, Sandeep Sharma (retained), Tushar Deshpande, Akash Madhwal, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Kwena Maphaka, Ashok Sharma
Strengths: Rajasthan Royals retained five batters before the auction and further boosted their batting unit with the signing of Nitish Rana, which fill in a vacant spot in the middle order and ensures they have all bases covered with the bat.
Weakness: The Royals’ lacked all-rounder in the last cycle and have done little to fill the gap unless Riyan Parag and Jofra Archer contribute more with the ball and bat.
RR have spent Rs. 12 crore to bring Archer back to the franchise but his fitness remains a major question which could their pace bowling unit lacking some spice despite Sandeep Sharma being a reliable performer over the last two seasons.
Royals' have replaced Ravichandran Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal with Wanindhu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theeksana but the Sri Lankan duo will need to be more consistent than previous seasons.
Strongest Playing XII: Sanju Samson (WK/C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Nitish Rana, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Shimron Hetmyer, Shubam Dubey, Jofra Archer, Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Sandeep Sharma, Tushar Deshpande
Rating – 8/10
Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Full Squad:
Batters: Virat Kohli (retained), Rajat Patidar (retained), Tim David, Manoj Bhandage, Devdutt Padikkal, Swastik Chikara
Wicketkeepers: Phil Salt, Jitesh Sharma
Allrounders: Liam Livingstone (spin), Krunal Pandya (spin), Swapnil Singh (spin), Romario Shepherd (pace), Jacob Bethell (spin), Mohit Rathee (spin)
Spinners: Suyash Sharma,
Fast bowlers: Josh Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yash Dayal (retained), Rasikh Salam, Nuwan Thushara, Lungi Ngidi, Abhinandan Singh
Strenghts: RCB’s bowling unit has been an area of concern for years but this time around, their bowling unit will aspire confidence and looks one that can succeed on the nightmare Chinnaswamy Stadium track. Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar offer a dream pace-bowling partnership for all phases of the game while Yash Dayal and Rasikh Salam’s contrasting skillset with the new ball and in the death respectively will offer their new captain a lot of lot of options.
In Phil Salt, the Bengaluru-based franchise have found an opening partner that will compliment Kohli perfectly and allow him to play his natural game. Meanwhile, a middle order consisting of Rajat Patidar and Liam Livingstone will send tremors to opposition bowling units.
Weakness: RCB’s batting unit is filled with right-handers apart from Krunal Pandya, who is only expected to bat in the lower order. The right-handedness will leave RCB vulnerable to left-arm and leg spin which will allow opposition teams a simple solution to cause trouble.
The Bengaluru-based outfit's spin attack lacks experience and pedigree apart. Suyash is only the wrist spinner in the team, who struggled last season after impressing in his debut campaign. They will be havily dependent on all-rounders like Krunal and Livingstonez
Strongest Playing XII: Phil Salt, Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Liam Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Krunal Pandya, Tim David, Josh Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suyash Sharma, Yash Dayal, Rasikh Salam
Rating – 7.5/10
Punjab Kings
Full Squad
Batters: Shreyas Iyer, Shashank Singh (retained), Nehal Wadhera, Harnoor Singh Pannu, Priyansh Arya, Pyla Avinash
Wicketkeepers: Josh Inglis, Vishnu Vinod, Prabhsimran Singh (retained)
Allrounders: Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Harpreet Brar, Azmatullah Omarzai, Aaron Hardie , Musheer Khan, Suryansh Shedge
Spinners: Yuzvendra Chahal, Pravin Dubey
Fast bowlers: Arshdeep Singh (RTM), Lockie Ferguson, Yash Thakur, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Kuldeep Sen, Xavier Bartlett
Strenghts: With a budget of Rs. 110 crore, Punjab heavily invested in making a strong Indian core with Shreyas, Arshdeep Singh, and Yuzendra Chahal signing for them in big money deals. Their batting unit is capable of batting with an aggressive mindset and transform their fortunes.
Weakness: PBKS did not buy a specialist opener to jon Prabhsimran Singh at the top order which leave the position a bit vulnerable. The likes of Josh Inglis and Marcus Stoinis could open the batting unit or uncapped Harnoor Singh could get the nod.
Arshdeep lacks a reliable pace bowler to suppot him and Lockie Ferguson's injury history leaves doubt over him while Marco Jansen still has prove his worth as a standalone pacer.
Strongest Playing XII: Prabhsimran Singh, Josh Inglis (WK), Shreyas Iyer, Glenn Maxwell, Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Harpeet Brar, Marco Jansen, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal,Kuldeep Sen
Rating – 7.5/10
Luckow Super Giants
Full Squad:
Batters: Aiden Markram, David Miller, Ayush Badoni (retained), Himmat Singh, Matthew Breetzke
Wicketkeepers: Rishabh Pant, Nicholas Pooran (retained), Aryan Juyal
Allrounders: Adbul Samad, Mitchell Marsh, Shahbaz Ahmed, Yuvraj Chaudhary, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Arshin Kulkarni
Spinners: Ravi Bishnoi (retained), M Siddharth, Digvesh Singh
Fast bowlers: Mayank Yadav (retained), Mohsin Khan (retained), Akash Deep, Avesh Khan, Akash Singh, Shamar Joseph, Prince Yadav
Strenghts: The big Rs. 27 core investment on Rishabh Pant with the signing of David Miller and retention of Nicholas Pooran means LSG have the most fearsome middle order in the tournament, with three capable of taking the match away from the opponets.
Weakness: Apart from the late signing of Shamar Joseph, LSG not any overseas pacer in their ranks with their fast-bowling department and all Indian unit. However, Mayank Yadav and Mohsin Khan are both extremely injuy prone and could throw the franchise’s plan in disarray while Avesh Khan has not proved reliable yet.
The Lucknow-based unit did not purchase any specalist openers instead which means a make-shift pair will face the new ball.
Strongest Playing XII: Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Rishabh Pant (WK), Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, David Miller, Shahbaz Ahmed, Abdul Samad, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Mohsin Khan, Mayank Yadav
Ratings: 6/10