IPL Auctions: Allrounders the focus as 405 players contend for 87 places

The IPL have released the IPL 2023 auction player list.

Initially, the franchises released a list of 991 players, which was trimmed to 369. Later, the franchises requested 36 more players to be included in the final list, so 405 players will be presented at the IPL 2023 auction.

Of the 405, 273 are Indians, 132 are overseas players, four of whom are from associate nations. In addition, 119 of the 405 players are international players, while 282 players are not on the squad.

England have the most participants in the overseas category with 27 players, including players like Ben Stokes and Sam Curran.

Australian all-rounder Cameron Green is among 21 players from Australia on the list. 

Twenty-two players were from South Africa, 20 from West Indies, ten from New Zealand, and eight from Afghanistan.

Competition is fierce, however, as only 87 of the 405 players will eventually make the selection, 30 of those places earmarked for overseas players but franchises are not obligated to use their full overseas allotment.

INR two crore is the highest reserve price, and 19 overseas players have opted to be placed in the highest category. 11 players with a base price of INR 1.5 crore are on the auction list. 

Manish Pandey and Mayank Agarwal are the two Indian players with a base price of INR one crore on the list of 20 cricketers.

All-rounders Sam Curran, Stokes, and Cameron Green could become the highest earners in this year's promotion as they are all listed in the second group of the bidding process. At the same time, Indian batsman Mayank Agarwal and England star Joe Root will start with their names in the first group.

The auction for the 16th season of IPL will be held on December 23 and will start at 2:30 PM IST.

Franchises revealed their list of retained and released players last month. Sunrisers had the most money for the auction ($42.25 million), followed by Punjab ($32.20 million), Lucknow ($23.35 million), Mumbai ($20.55 million), Chennai ($20.45 million), Delhi ($19.45 million), Gujarat ($19.25 million), Rajasthan Royals ($13.2 million), RCB ($8.75 million), and KKR ($9.5 million).