Who will do the best business in the IPL auction 2020? Here’s everything you need to know.

The Indian Premier League 2020 auction next week signals the first event of the 13th edition of the tournament. It’ll be the final year in which these squads are together, as the auction next year will involve a major overhauling of teams.

This time, most sides have their core intact. However, expect big moves from Kings XI Punjab, who released their captain R Ashwin during the trade video and head into the IPL auction 2020 with the biggest budget of INR 47.20 cr and up to 15 slots to fill.

The champions Mumbai Indians are more or less a settled side, but they have a maximum of seven slots to fill and INR 13.05 cr to spend – could we see an expensive splash on one big name? How will Chennai Super Kings, the 2019 runner-ups, treat the auction? They have always championed the values of experience, but will they use their INR 14.60 cr to add some youthful exuberance to the side?

Kolkata Knight Riders also should be one to watch out for. Their primary agenda this IPL 2020 auction will be to reduce their over-reliance on Andre Russell and Dinesh Karthik. They have INR 35.65 cr to ensure that is the case. Meanwhile, all of Royal Challengers Bangalore, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals have their own agendas, with varying levels of budget to spend. It should be a cracker!

Here are all the details you need to know ahead of the IPL 2020 auction:

IPL auction 2020 date & time

The IPL auction 2020 will be held on December 19 in Kolkata. The event is expected to begin at 2.30pm IST.

What channel will it be shown on?

The auction will be broadcast live on the Star Sports network in India. It will also be streamed live on Hotstar.

How does the IPL 2020 auction work?

The IPL auction (sometimes wrongly referred to as the IPL draft) will feature a list of 332 players, each of whom will go under the hammer. Teams will bid for the players they want, and each successful purchase will chip away at their remaining salary cap. Every team is assigned a max salary cap of INR 80 crores, but part of that sum is accounted for the players already in the side, either through retentions or transfers. Some of the under-performing teams from the 2019 IPL chose to free up a larger purse by releasing a bigger group of players.

Every team therefore has a different purchasing power for the upcoming auction, depending on the value of players they already have in their teams. Kings XI Punjab has the biggest remaining purse at INR 42.70 cr, while Mumbai Indians have the lowest at INR 13.05 cr. As many as 73 spots are waiting to be filled across the eight franchises, up to 29 of which could be overseas players.

Bidding will start at the base price set by the player for himself, and if only one team expresses interest in the player, they will acquire his services at the listed base price. But if two or more teams are interested in the same player, they will keep making incremental bids until other teams relent.

IPL auction 2020 pick order

As per reports, the players will be divided into various numbered sets, and will be auctioned in that order. The highest-bidding franchise will then secure the player’s services for the upcoming season.

IPL auction overseas players 2020

There are plenty of high-profile overseas names that will be up for grabs – find the full list here! Some of these could include the likes of Pat Cummins, Aaron Finch, Jason Roy, Angelo Mathews Glenn Maxwell, Eoin Morgan and Chris Lynn.

India players up for grabs

One of the big Indian names to watch out for is Robin Uthappa, who had been a mainstay at Kolkata Knight Riders until he was released after the last season due to declining form. Jaydev Unadkat, who has claimed some of the biggest salaries in IPL history, is also one to watch out for.

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