IPL Auction 2026: What the teams need – Part I

Chennai Super Kings
Purse: INR 43.40 Cr | Slots available: 9 | Overseas slots: 4
Retained Squad: Ayush Mhatre, Sanju Samson, Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Shivam Dube, Dewald Brevis, MS Dhoni (wk), Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Nathan Ellis, Khaleel Ahmed, Urvil Patel, Gurjapneet Singh, Mukesh Choudhary, Ramakrishna Ghosh, Shreyas Gopal, Jamie Overton.

With a settled top five, CSK's priority is securing two middle-order batters who can also bowl. After trading Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran for Sanju Samson, they need complementary all-rounders: one spin-bowling and one pace-bowling. CSK had the poorest death-over economy last season, making this an urgent area to address. Releasing Matheesha Pathirana also means targeting an overseas death-overs pacer as backup for Nathan Ellis. With Jadeja's departure and R. Ashwin's retirement, they may also seek a finger spinner, as Shreyas Gopal is the only reserve. Armed with the second-largest purse, they will back themselves to secure key targets.

Potential targets: Cameron Green, Venkatesh Iyer, Liam Livingstone, Jason Holder, Michael Bracewell, Prashant Veer, Sunny Sandhu, Mustafizur Rahman.

Sunrisers Hyderabad
Purse: INR 25.50 Cr | Slots available: 10 | Overseas slots: 2
Retained Squad: Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan (wk), Heinrich Klaasen, Smaran Ravichandran, Nitish Reddy, Aniket Verma, Pat Cummins (c), Harsh Dubey, Harshal Patel, Eshan Malinga, Jaydev Unadkat, Zeeshan Ansari, Brydon Carse, Kamindu Mendis.

SRH's major move was releasing Mohammed Shami. With Harshal Patel and Eshan Malinga more specialized at the death, they need a new-ball bowler. SRH were among the worst powerplay teams in 2025, a key concern. After releasing Abhinav Manohar, Wiaan Mulder, Sachin Baby, and Atharva Taide, they require backup domestic batters and could use an overseas slot for a backup to Travis Head and Heinrich Klaasen. Despite releasing Rahul Chahar and Adam Zampa, the spin department seems settled due to Zeeshan Ansari's performances and Harsh Dubey's emergence.

Potential targets: Aquib Nabi, Akash Deep, Ashok Sharma, Sarfaraz Khan, Deepak Hooda, Mahipal Lomror, Kartik Sharma.

Delhi Capitals
Purse: INR 21.80 Cr | Slots available: 8 | Overseas slots: 5
Retained Squad: KL Rahul, Abishek Porel (wk), Nitish Rana, Karun Nair/Sameer Rizvi, Axar Patel (c), Tristan Stubbs, Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar, T. Natarajan, Ajay Mandal, Madhav Tiwari, Tripurna Vijay, Dushmantha Chameera.

From 17 retained players, DC have a ready-made playing XII. They used seven different opening pairs last season, the most in 2025, and might seek an established player to pair with KL Rahul. With five overseas slots, they could add an experienced fast bowler given T. Natarajan's fitness concerns. Their pacers have historically struggled at the death, prompting a search for an overseas quick to bowl alongside Mitchell Starc. Once that is addressed, they might use an overseas spot for a backup middle-order batter for Tristan Stubbs.

Potential targets: Quinton de Kock, Pathum Nissanka, Jamie Smith, Jonny Bairstow, Matheesha Pathirana, Matt Henry, Mustafizur Rahman.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Purse: INR 16.40 Cr | Slots available: 8 | Overseas slots: 2
Retained Squad: Phil Salt, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (c), Tim David, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Krunal Pandya, Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma, Yash Dayal, Rasikh Dar, Abhinandan Singh, Swapnil Singh, Jacob Bethell, Nuwan Thushara.

The defending champions have a settled core. This auction is about finding backups. Josh Hazlewood's injury concerns will force RCB to use an overseas slot for a fast bowler with a similar profile, despite having Nuwan Thushara. Yash Dayal hasn't played competitively since the IPL final, so they might need a domestic left-arm seamer if he is unavailable. After releasing Mayank Agarwal, Manoj Bhandage, and Swastik Chikara, they lack backup Indian batters.

Potential targets: Lungi Ngidi, Alzarri Joseph, Taskin Ahmed, Spencer Johnson, Sarfaraz Khan, Deepak Hooda.

Punjab Kings
Purse: INR 11.50 Cr | Slots available: 4 | Overseas slots: 2
Retained Squad: Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Priyansh Arya, Shreyas Iyer (c), Nehal Wadhera, Mitchell Owen, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Harpreet Brar, Arshdeep Singh, Lockie Ferguson, Yuzvendra Chahal, Vyshak Vijaykumar, Musheer Khan, Harnoor Pannu, Pyla Avinash, Suryansh Shedge, Vishnu Vinod, Yash Thakur, Azmatullah Omarzai, Xavier Bartlett.

No team has retained more players than Punjab Kings. With only four slots available, the 2025 runners-up can back themselves to nail first-choice picks. With four top-class overseas all-rounders, they can play three in the XII or swap one for an impactful overseas batter, potentially a wicketkeeper, to fill the role Josh Inglis played in 2025. While they have Xavier Bartlett, PBKS could push for another overseas pacer as backup for Lockie Ferguson, who hasn't played since September and has injury concerns. They could also add a backup for Yuzvendra Chahal given limited spin options.

Potential targets: Shai Hope, Jonny Bairstow, Matt Henry, Anrich Nortje, Rahul Chahar, Ravi Bishnoi, Vignesh Puthur.