He may not have represented India in a T20I for nearly a year, but Shreyas Iyer is still hot property in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Having led the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to the title last season, he was perhaps surprisingly not retained ahead of the auction. No matter. In the first marquee set at the mega auction in Jeddah, Iyer shattered the existing IPL record, after Punjab Kings shelled out an astonishing Rupees 26.75 crores for his services. That was a full 2 crores more than KKR had paid for Mitchell Starc at the last auction.
Iyer, who plays for Mumbai in domestic cricket, started his IPL career with the Delhi Daredevils (now Capitals) in 2015, and spent seven seasons there, even leading the franchise after Gautam Gambhir’s retirement. But after Delhi gave the captaincy to Rishabh Pant, Iyer moved to KKR in 2022, though he would miss the entire 2023 season through injury.
IPL 2025 mega auction: Complete list of players sold
In 116 matches across those nine seasons, Iyer has scored 3127 runs at a modest strike-rate of 127.47. He was markedly more aggressive in the 2024 campaign, striking at 146.86 while making 351 runs for KKR. And his old franchise were very much part of the initial bidding, matching Punjab paddle for paddle in the initial bidding.
After Punjab’s interest appeared to wane with the price going over 7 crores, Delhi stepped in. With the bids going over 10 crores, KKR’s CEO Venky Mysore signalled that his franchise were out. That was the signal for Punjab to go back in, with the next few minutes a back and forth between the two northern franchises.
Also Read: Who is Mallika Sagar? Meet the auctioneer of IPL 2025 mega auction in Jeddah
Both Delhi and Punjab had retained a significant portion of their 120-crores auction purse, and each franchise was in need of a captain as well. Ricky Ponting, formerly with Delhi Capitals, has now been tasked with turning Punjab’s fortunes around as coach, and he appeared instrumental in making sure the Punjab paddle kept being raised.
Hemang Badani, Delhi’s new coach, seemed equally interested, and as the bidding crossed 20 crores, jaws started to drop. Soon, the money spent on Starc had been put in the shade, and Delhi gave up only when faced with the prospect of having to pay 27 crores to get their man.
Having spent such a sum to get Iyer, it’s almost certain that he will lead Punjab out for the 2025 season. Iyer played under Ponting’s coaching in Delhi and reached a final earlier in his career, and will hope that, apart from the spike in his bank balance, this move will also revive his India career.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
