Abu Dhabi, Dec 16: The IPL caravan rolls into Abu Dhabi on Tuesday for a mini-auction that promises sharp strategy, high-stakes bidding and a few surprises as franchises fine-tune their squads for the 2026 season.

After the first round — capped players, Cameron Green bagged the biggest deal after he was sold to Kolkata Knight Riders for a massive ₹25.20 Crore, being raised from a base price of ₹2 crore.

It was Mumbai Indians opened the bidding for Green along with KKR, before Rajasthan Royals replaced MI in the bidding battle. Once the Royals backed out, Chennai Super Kings, who had the second highest purse before the auction, joined the bidding war. In the end, they too backed out helping KKR securing Green.

With this sale, CSK now have the biggest purse remaining with over ₹43 Crore, followed by KKR with just over ₹39 Crore. Delhi Capitals got the services of David Miller for his base price of ₹2 Crore.

The auction began with young Australian Jake Fraser-McGurk, who remained unsold, so did Prithvi Shaw, Devon Conway, and Sarfaraz Khan.

The one-day auction began at 2:30 pm IST at the Etihad Arena, with 369 players -- 244 Indians and 115 overseas -- chasing 77 available slots across 10 teams.

All Eyes on Cameron Green

Australian all-rounder Cameron Green headlines pre-auction chatter. Slotted at the maximum base price of Rs 2 crore, the 26-year-old is expected to ignite a bidding war. Kolkata Knight Riders and Chennai Super Kings, owners of the two largest purses, are primed to go head-to-head. Green missed IPL 2025 through injury, but his T20 record continues to command premium interest.

Who Holds the Power

KKR arrive with an auction-high purse of Rs 64.30 crore and 13 slots to fill after releasing Andre Russell, Quinton de Kock and Venkatesh Iyer, signalling a full-scale reset. CSK follow with Rs 43.30 crore as they hunt for all-rounders after parting ways with Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran.

At the other end of the spectrum, Mumbai Indians have just Rs 2.75 crore to spend, leaving the five-time champions with limited room for manoeuvre.

The Premium Bracket

A total of 40 players have fixed their base price at ₹2 crore. Venkatesh Iyer and Ravi Bishnoi are the only Indians in that elite group. The marquee list features David Miller, Steve Smith, Quinton de Kock, Liam Livingstone, Matheesha Pathirana and Jamie Smith.

Under IPL rules, overseas players are capped at ₹18 crore, even if bids exceed that figure.

Franchise Focus

KKR are expected to target an explosive opener-wicketkeeper, pace depth and a Russell replacement. CSK’s wishlist includes elite all-rounders, a Pathirana buyback or a specialist for the death overs, and added middle-order firepower. Royal Challengers Bengaluru are likely to look for fast-bowling cover and middle-order insurance, while Delhi Capitals have an opener at the top of their agenda.

Sunrisers Hyderabad are expected to seek an experienced spinner, an overseas finisher and pace options. Lucknow Super Giants may prioritise a middle-order power hitter and fast-bowling backups amid injury concerns.

Wildcards and Watchlist Names

Uncapped players Auqib Nabi, Ashok Sharma, Prashant Veer, Kartik Sharma and Salil Arora have drawn interest from scouts. Abhimanyu Easwaran was added to the auction list at the last moment.

Trades, Trends and the Big Picture

Ahead of the auction, CSK made headlines with a major trade, sending Ravindra Jadeja (revised fee Rs 14 crore) and Sam Curran (Rs 2.4 crore) to Rajasthan Royals in exchange for Sanju Samson at Rs 18 crore. Chennai also transferred an additional Rs 1.6 crore to complete the deal, absorbing Samson’s higher retention cost while helping Rajasthan rebalance its finances.

This is the third straight year the IPL auction is being held outside India, following editions in Dubai and Jeddah. With no Right to Match cards available, teams will have to bid aggressively to reclaim released players.

The auction pool began with 1,390 registrations, trimmed to 1,005 after scrutiny and finally narrowed to 369 shortlisted names. Those players will battle for just 77 slots, including 31 reserved for overseas cricketers.

With a combined purse of ₹237.55 crore in play, the mini-auction is set to reshape squads and set the tone for an intriguing IPL 2026 season.