IPL to ban players who pull out after getting signed in auctions
Under the new IPL rules, players who pull out of a season after being signed in an auction will get a two-year ban from the tournament or the auction. The new rules were released late on Saturday (September 28) as the league made calls on player retentions, Right-to-Match options, and other aspects for the 2025 season.
Players pulling out after getting signed in the IPL auctions has been a big, much-talked-about issue, especially among overseas players. Indian pundits have been vocal in their requests to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to take strict actions against such players. This is because it leaves their teams in a bad spot and it seems like the demand has been heard.
"Any player who registers in the player auction and after getting picked at the auction, makes himself unavailable before the start of the season, will get banned from participating in the tournament and player auction for 2 seasons," the BCCI said in a statement, signed by honorary secretary Jay Shah.
Some players pull out due to genuine reasons like injuries and mental health constraints. However, some franchises have faced difficulties with repeat offenders whose decisions leave teams scrambling for replacements from the unsold lot.
Big auctions mandatory for overseas players: IPL
The authorities have also cracked hard on overseas players who stay away from mega or 'Big Auctions'. They put their names in smaller auctions in the middle of three-year cycles instead. The latter are less predictable and if the demand for a particular skillset is high, they can get quite high values for their services.
That happened with Australia's Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins last time as they became the league's most expensive signings. The former went to KKR for INR 24.75 crores while the latter joined SRH for INR 20.5 crores.
"Any Overseas Player will have to register for the Big Auction. In case the overseas player doesn't register, then he will be ineligible to register in the following year’s player auction," the statement added.
The IPL 2025 auction is slated for November and is likely to be held in a West Asian country.