"You won't get 6 good quality Indian players at the auction for ₹45 crore" - Aakash Chopra says SRH have a difficult task in IPL 2025 auction
Aakash Chopra reckons the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) will have a tough job to assemble a formidable team for IPL 2025. He pointed out that they need at least six more Indians, including an Impact Player, to complete their playing combination, and have a limited budget available.
SRH spent ₹75 crore to retain Heinrich Klaasen, Pat Cummins, Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, and Nitish Kumar Reddy ahead of the IPL 2025 auction. They have a remaining purse of ₹45 crore heading into the auction.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra,' the cricketer-turned-commentator opined that SRH are unlikely to get six high-quality Indian players within their available budget.
"They have the least overseas slots available now because they have retained three - Pat Cummins, Travis Head and Heinrich Klaasen. All three are going to be part of the XI, which is a good thing, but it is also not that great a thing because now you have ₹45 crore left with you," he said (1:30).
"You have to create your entire team for ₹45 crore in which you need at least six more Indian players because you have only two. You won't get six good quality Indian players at the auction for ₹45 crore," Chopra added.
SRH spent a whopping ₹23 crore to retain Klaasen, the highest for the 2025 IPL. They acquired Cummins for ₹18 crore, Abhishek and Head for ₹14 crore apiece, and Reddy for ₹6 crore.
"This will be the team that will keep watching when Rishabh Pant, Ishan Kishan, and KL Rahul come in the auction" - Aakash Chopra on SRH
![Rishabh Pant will likely be one of the most sought-after players at the IPL 2025 auction. [P/C: iplt20.com]](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2024/11/8ad8e-17310484719430-1920.jpg?w=500)
In the same video, Aakash Chopra noted that the SunRisers Hyderabad won't be able to afford the likes of Rishabh Pant, Ishan Kishan, KL Rahul, and Shreyas Iyer.
"This will be the team that will keep watching when Rishabh Pant, Ishan Kishan and KL Rahul come in the auction. They might wait for Devdutt Padikkal. They won't be able to afford Shreyas Iyer. They will lift the paddle for some time and then leave him," he said (2:05).
The former India opener acknowledged that the Mumbai Indians have also spent ₹75 crore to retain five players. However, he pointed out that all of them are Indians.
"They might lift the paddle many times but won't be able to afford any top-tier Indian player. Mumbai also spent ₹75 crore but they have kept five Indians. No overseas will go for ₹25 crore now and even if he goes, you will get a replacement for him," Chopra observed.
Chopra opined that SRH have an arduous task ahead.
"However, you get very few Indian players in the auction as no one leaves them, and whoever comes becomes very expensive. So I see this team getting formed in an interesting fashion next year. You might get overseas players cheap but Indian players will take a lot of money. So your task is going to be very difficult," he reasoned.
Chopra also noted that Pat Cummins is the only frontline bowler among the Hyderabad-based franchise's retentions and he too is overseas. However, he acknowledged that the franchise is known for doing well at the auction, as they did in the SA20 and the IPL last season.