The IPL 2025 Auction witnessed heart-stopping moments as teams targeted top calibre players, resulting in intense bidding wars. Yesterday’s IPL 2025 auction saw seventy-two players getting sold. Out of these24 were professional foreign players. ₹467.95 cr was collectively paid for using 4 Right to Match Cards (RTM) which were used to retain players.
This season, some of the top players are bound to feature prominently in the action thanks to high expenditures at the IPL auction. The likes of cricketers Jos Buttler and Mitchell Starc as well as other lesser-known players were able to bring in large amounts of money in spite of the competition reflecting the high value of IPL.
Teams focused their attention towards signing game-changers who can push their teams a notch higher in terms of winning levels. In this post, we will focus on the most expensive players in the IPL 2025 auction and the teams who bought them with the final bid amounts. For more updates regarding IPL, you can visit Exchmarket News.
List of the most expensive players in the Indian Premier League
A number of players are anticipated to break previous records with outrageous prices as the bidding wars heat up. The most costly players from the IPL 2025 auction are listed here, along with their final prices.
| Sr. No. | Team | Player | Base Price | Winning Bid | Position |
| 1 | Lucknow Super Giants | Rishabh Pant | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹27,00,00,000 | Wicketkeeper-Batsman |
| 2 | Punjab Kings | Shreyas Iyer | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹26,75,00,000 | Batsman |
| 3 | Kolkata Knight Riders | Venkatesh Iyer | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹23,75,00,000 | All-Rounder |
| 4 | Punjab Kings | Arshdeep Singh | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹18,00,00,000 (RTM) | Bowler |
| 5 | Punjab Kings | Yuzvendra Chahal | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹18,00,00,000 | Bowler |
| 6 | Gujarat Titans | Jos Buttler | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹15,75,00,000 | Wicketkeeper-Batsman |
| 7 | Delhi Capitals | KL Rahul | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹14,00,00,000 | Wicketkeeper-Batsman |
| 8 | Mumbai Indians | Trent Boult | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹12,50,00,000 | Bowler |
| 9 | Rajasthan Royals | Jofra Archer | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹12,50,00,000 | Bowler |
| 10 | Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Josh Hazlewood | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹12,50,00,000 | Bowler |
| 11 | Gujarat Titans | Mohammad Siraj | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹12,25,00,000 | Bowler |
| 12 | Delhi Capitals | Mitchell Starc | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹11,75,00,000 | Bowler |
| 13 | Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Phil Salt | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹11,50,00,000 | Wicketkeeper-Batsman |
| 14 | Sunrisers Hyderabad | Ishan Kishan | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹11,25,00,000 | Wicketkeeper-Batsman |
| 15 | Punjab Kings | Marcus Stoinis | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹11,00,00,000 | All-Rounder |
| 16 | Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Jitesh Sharma | ₹1,00,00,000 | ₹11,00,00,000 | Wicketkeeper-Batsman |
| 17 | Delhi Capitals | T. Natarajan | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹10,75,00,000 | Bowler |
| 18 | Gujarat Titans | Kagiso Rabada | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹10,75,00,000 | Bowler |
| 19 | Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Bhuvneshwar Kumar | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹10,75,00,000 | Bowler |
| 20 | Chennai Super Kings | Noor Ahmad | ₹2,00,00,000 | ₹10,00,00,000 | Bowler |
Top 5 highest paid retained cricketers
A few weeks before the onset of the much-awaited mega auction, on the 31st of October, the teams announced the list of all the players that the respective teams had retained for the 2025 IPL season. Despite the fact that Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul made it unexpectedly shocking for fans during the retention window, quite a number of players had been retained for the IPL only to leave and return during the next season.
Jasprit Bumrah – Rs 18 crores
Mumbai Indians had Jasprit Bumrah within their squad, and backed him with an 18 crore rupees retention contract. The fast bowler, who has made Indian cricket history, taken 20 wickets in 13 IPL 2024 matches coming in third for the most wickets taken in the “Purple Cap” with this, even after having received the award for “Player of the Tournament” during Indian National teams T20 World Cup 2024 campaign in the US & West Indies. Even more surprising – Bumrah’s IPL 2024 salary beats not only most of the Indians, but even the retained players from the Mumbai Indians insane for their team, Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, and Suryakumar Yadav.
Bumrah, Mumbai Indians’ own, has claimed 165 wickets from all of his 133 matches in the IPL, at a successful average of 22.51.
Rashid Khan – Rs 18 crores
The Gujarat Titans franchise gave Afghanistan spin wizard Rashid Khan a crucial extension of faith for the 2025 IPL, even though he had his worst IPL season with the ball earlier this year, at least statistically. The leg-spinner is expected to earn Rs. 18 crore for playing for the Titans again, surpassing even the earnings of IPL cult hero Rahul Tewatia and team captain Shubman Gill.
Nicholas Pooran – Rs 21 crores
For IPL 2025, Nicholas Pooran emerged as the Lucknow Super Giants’ (LSG) most expensive retention option. The team had to pay Rs. 21 crore to rehire the handsome West Indies batsman-wicketkeeper. The 29-year-old is the only foreign star among the five players the team has kept who will return to play next season.
Pooran’s explosive batting form for the LSG, demonstrated earlier this year during the IPL 2024 season, justifies his retention tag. The left-handed batting raider amassed 499 runs at an average of 62.37 in 14 tournament innings while keeping an explosive strike rate of 178.21.
Virat Kohli – Rs 21 crores
Along with Rajat Patidar and Yash Dayal, the RCB team only retained three cricketers for the 2025 Indian Premier League: the legendary Virat Kohli. Next year, Kohli will celebrate his 18th consecutive season with the RCB, having earned Rs. 21 crores for the team.
Among current players who debuted in the tournament’s first edition in 2008, Kohli is still the only cricketer in IPL history to have played every game for a single team. Even during this year’s IPL 2024 season, when he scored 741 runs to earn the coveted “Orange Cap,” his ravenous appetite for runs was evident.
Heinrich Klaasen – Rs 23 crores
Heinrich Klaasen, a South African T20 heavyweight, is expected to stay with the SRH team for another season, through the 2025 Indian Premier League. The Proteas batsman-wicketkeeper was signed by the team on October 31 for an incredible Rs. 23 crores, making him the season’s most expensive retention acquisition.
Since making his IPL 2023 debut for the SRH, Klaasen has amassed 927 runs for the “Orange Army” in just 26 innings over two separate IPL tournaments, at an incredible strike rate of almost 175 no less.
Summary
A large number of gifted cricket players are still up for grabs as the IPL Auction 2025 nears its last day tomorrow, which has fans and teams alike incredibly intrigued and excited. As the clock is running out, teams are surely assessing their options, taking into account both the players’ abilities and potential contributions to the dynamics of the team. Therefore, for more updates and exclusive news follow Exchmarket News.
