IPL 2026 Auction: Who were the Top Buys in the Last Mini Auction?

The IPL 2026 auction is less than a month away as it takes place on December 16 in Abu Dhabi. After the mega auction before 2025 season, this will be a smaller one, with franchises looking to fine-tune their squad.

Kolkata Knight Riders are heading into the auction with the biggest purse of Rs 64.3 crore, as they have 13 slots to fill in the table. On the other hand, Mumbai Indians are coming with the smallest purse of Rs 2.75 crore, as they have just five players to find.

Mini auctions are always interesting and somewhat unpredictable due to their dynamic nature. A number of players garner significant amounts as they often find multiple franchises attempting to sign them in these auctions to find the right balance in their side.

As the IPL 2026 mini auction approaches, the previous mini auction in 2024 was an eventful one, which took place in 2023, ahead of the IPL 2024 season.

IPL 2024 Mini Auction

The IPL 2024 mini-auction was held on December 19, 2023, in Dubai, featuring 333 players competing for 77 remaining slots across the 10 IPL teams. This auction is called a mini-auction because it follows the main mega-auction, allowing franchises to fill gaps in their squads after player retentions and trades. Among these 333 players, 214 were Indian, including 116 capped players with international experience, while 119 were overseas players.

Each team entered the mini-auction with different remaining purse amounts and varying slot requirements, based on their prior retention and release decisions. The Gujarat Titans had the largest purse remaining at Rs 38.15 crore, followed by Sunrisers Hyderabad at Rs 34 crore.

IPL 2024 Auction: Who were the Top Buys?

The auction was notable for record-breaking bidding, with Mitchell Starc becoming the most expensive player ever bought in an IPL auction for Rs 24.75 crore by Kolkata Knight Riders, surpassing Pat Cummins, who was bought by Sunrisers Hyderabad for Rs 20.5 crore. New Zealand batter Daryl Mitchell was signed for Rs 14 crore by the Chennai Super Kings.