Impact Player, availability key factors in mini auction

There is an odd resemblance between a mini-IPL auction and the theory of inflation in economics. If the latter, as the definition goes, is about too many dollars chasing too few goods, the mini-auction sees too many crores chasing very few players.

"There is no better comparison. A mini-auction is where the prices skyrocket for too few players," says the CEO of a franchise who had been part of quite a few auctions. "A couple of players will have the biggest paydays of their lives."

It is unlikely to be just a couple of players. If the talk in the IPL circle is any indicator, four players will be high on the teams' agenda. Cameron Green, Sam Curran, Ben Stokes and Mayank Agarwal, not necessarily in that order, are expected to command big bucks. Over INR 200 crore (INR 206.5 crore) will be available for transaction with 87 player slots to be filled. However, not every franchise is likely to fill all the permitted 25 positions in a squad and one can be sure that there would be a disproportionate splurge in Kochi on a few players

Apart from the three overseas all-rounders and Agarwal, the franchise attention could also be on a batsman like Harry Brook but Curran, declared the player of the recent T20 World Cup in Australia, looks the hottest of the cakes. The million-dollar question going into the Auction Day is whether he will be able to breach the INR 20 crore mark and become the biggest official price ever for an IPL recruit. For that matter, will any player come close to the INR 20 crore mark is the next obvious query.

There are a few teams with enough in their reserves to make quite a spash. Sunrisers Hyderabad and Punjab Kings will be among the most active. There are a other cluster of teams with a purse around INR 20 crores who could also drive prizes up.

The deciding factor for the price would be the order of picks at the auction and more crucially the availability. Less than 24 hours for the hammer to be wielded and the paddle to be raised, the BCCI has not informed the franchise about the duration the overseas players will be able to stay in the IPL. On occasions, the BCCI would communicate about this a week earlier so that the franchises can do their planning but this time it has taken too long for the teams' comfort. "That is the way the BCCI does, we cannot do anything," rues a helpless official of a team.

The biggest concern for the teams is the talk of conditional NOC. It is being said that a couple of boards, like Cricket Australia (CA) and England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), are unlikely to permit their marquee players to bowl in 14 games if they stay through the league. For instance, Stokes did not bowl in the recent Multan Test. Mark Wood too, who will be turning up for Lucknow Super Giants, may come with conditions attached. Ditto with Green. All due to the looming Ashes series in the English Summer. The teams are hoping for clarity but none has been forthcoming. For the record, the BCCI has also not informed the teams about players with suspect action, information that would be, otherwise, shared days in advance before an auction.

Another major influencing aspect would be the Impact Player concept. The general impression is it would seriously affect the sellability of the Indian all-rounders. "If a team can use a specialist, why have a bits and pieces players unless one is a Ravindra Jadeja or a Stokes or a Green or Curran," feels a franchise official. The Impact Player may make a game exciting but it may eat into the stock of the all-rounders in the country.

It is obvious that with about INR 7 and 8 crores in their kitty, Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bangalore will be the least active teams in the auction.

KEY POINTS

- The auction will feature 405 players and commence with the full round of Capped players by specialism -- batsmen, all-rounders, wicketkeeper/batsmen, fast bowlers and spinners and then move into a full specialism round of uncapped players. The accelerated process will start after player No 86. The first accelerated process will cover all the players from 87 - 405.

"The franchises will be asked to nominate a set number of players from this group. Once these players (87-405) have been presented, franchises will be requested to submit the names of players (unpresented / unsold) from all those on the full list of 405 for further accelerated process," the BCCI said.

- Out of 405 players, 273 are Indians and 132 are overseas, of which four players are from associate nations. The total capped players are 119, uncapped players are 282.

- Franchisees are required to have a minimum of 18 and a maximum of 25 players and the minimum squad spend must be INR 71.25 crores. The maximum a team can spend on squad acquisition is INR 95 crores. Post the retention of players in advance of the Player Auction, the table below summarises the 2023 Salary Cap remaining and the remaining overseas player slots for each franchise.

Funds and Slots

Base Prices of key players

INR 2 crore: Tom Banton, Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Tymal Mills, Jamie Overton, Craig Overton, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Ben Stokes, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Chris Lynn, Kane Williamson, Adam Milne, Jimmy Neesham, Rilee Rossouw, Rassie van der Dussen, Jason Holder, Nicholas Pooran.

INR 1.5 crore: Sean Abott, Riley Meredith, Jhye Richardson, Adam Zampa, Shakib Al Hasan, Harry Brook, Will Jacks, Dawid Malan, Jason Roy, Sherfane Rutherford, Nathan Coulter-Nile.

INR 1 crore: Mayank Agarwal, Manish Pandey, Mohammad Nabi, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Moises Henriques, Andrew Tye, Joe Root, Luke Wood, Michael Bracewell, Kyle Jamieson, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Heinrich Klaasen, Tabraiz Shamsi, Kusal Perera, Roston Chase, Rakheem Cornwall, Shai Hope, David Wiese.

INR 75 lakh: Reece Topley, Wayne Parnell, Daniel Sams, Joshua Philippe, Ish Sodhi, Tom Curran, D'Arcy Short, David Payne, Carlos Brathwaite.