The retention rules for Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 have recently been unveiled, leading franchises to strategize on player retention. Each team can retain a maximum of six players from their existing squad, through retention or Right to Match (RTM).
The six retentions or Right to Match (RTM) options can include a maximum of five capped players, both Indian and overseas, as well as a maximum of two uncapped players.
While many franchises may leverage this rule to keep their key players for the upcoming IPL 2025 season, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) are expected to adopt a different strategy, likely retaining only four players.
For IPL 2025, the auction purse has increased to Rs 120 crore for each franchise, which is Rs 20 crore more than last year. Each franchise can retain up to six players, including Right to Match (RTM) options. The players can be retained through direct retention, a mix of direct retentions and RTMs, or exclusively via RTMs.
According to new retention rules for IPL 2025, first three retained players will receive Rs 18 crore, Rs 14 crore, and Rs 11 crore, respectively. If the team also retains capped players in the fourth and fifth positions, they will need to pay Rs 18 crore and Rs 14 crore to those players, respectively.
If a franchise opts to retain five players, Rs 75 crore will be deducted from its auction purse of Rs 120 crore, leaving Rs 45 crore to acquire the remaining squad members.
CSK is likely to retain only three capped players: captain Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ravindra Jadeja, and Mathisha Pathirana. Additionally, MS Dhoni, having retired internationally for more than five years, can be retained as an uncapped player under the new rules, which means the team will only need to pay Rs 4 crore for him.
Chennai Super Kings likely to use RTM for Shivam Dube
Chennai Super Kings can spend only Rs 47 crore, retaining three capped players and one uncapped player, resulting in a remaining auction purse of Rs 73 crore. They also have the option to release their star all-rounder Shivam Dubey and use the Right to Match (RTM) option to potentially reacquire him during IPL 2025 mega auction.
The RTM allows any team to reclaim a player it has released, even if he is bought by another franchise during the auction. In addition to Dubey, CSK can utilize one of its RTM options for another player as well.
