The Mega IPL Auction 2025 went on in Jeddah on Monday and again witnessed fierce competition and some significant upsets. Day 2 kicked off at 3:30 PM IST, as franchises bought and sold players intending to complete their teams. Indian Premier League’s (IPL) 15 teams including the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) continue to look for leadership in their overhauls.
Another big news of the day was the possibility of RCB buying back their former Captain Faf du Plessis. But in an interesting twist, Delhi Capitals successfully bid for du Plessis for ₹2 crore and RCB did not exercise their ‘Right to Match’ card. Despite having ₹30.65 crore in the purse, RCB continues to lack leadership.
Big Buys and Strategic Picks
Several teams made bold acquisitions to bolster their squads:
- Rishabh Pant became the costliest asset in IPL as Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) bought him for ₹27 crore on the first day of the auction.
- Shreyas Iyer was also sold for a record-breaking amount of ₹26.75 crore to Punjab Kings and Venkatesh Iyer was sold for ₹23.75 crore to KKR which indicates the emphasis on Indian players this season.
Captaincy Options for KKR and RCB
KKR could target all-rounder Sam Curran, despite the poor performance of Punjab Kings under him earlier. Alternatively, they could consider the experienced campaigner, Kane Williamson who has been a captain in Sunrisers Hyderabad. As for RCB, choices are limited, and fans wait expectantly for them to come up with the successor for the captaincy post.
The auction continued with original big players and names like Glenn Phillips and Kane Williamson remaining unsold yet KKR bought Rovman Powell for ₹1.5 crore. Bowlers are said to lead the second day of the auction and the likes of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Marco Jansen, and Deepak Chahar might command high bids.
What Lies Ahead
Group lists have been provided for the accelerated auction phase of the exercise once the teams have reached the 116th player. This segment will focus on squads expanding their roster, especially in areas of bowling and all-rounder categories.
