IPL auction FAQs: Why are team purses different to how Chahar is getting paid more than Dhoni

We try to explain the teams' purses and why Chahal is getting a bigger paycheque than Dhoni in the following paragraphs.

To level the playing field for all the 10 teams before the mega auction the salary purse for each of the 10 teams was set at Rs 90 crore.

The existing eight teams were given the option to retain a maximum of four players from their existing squad or not retain any player at all. If the existing eight teams did not retain any players then they could go in the auction with a complete purse of Rs 90 crore.

However, if the eight teams planned to retain the players they had to follow the retention rules.

The teams could retain a maximum of three Indians, a maximum of two overseas, and a maximum of two uncapped Indians.

Also, the players retained had to follow the player retention slab.

If one of the eight existing teams planned to retain four players, then the sum of Rs 16 crore will be deducted for the first player,  Rs 12 crore for the second player,  Rs 8 crore for the third player, and Rs 6 crore for the fourth player making the total amount debited from the team's purse to Rs 42 crore.

However, the IPL governing council allowed the teams to pay the players whatever sum could be agreed upon on mutual consent.  But for each player retained for the sum agreed upon, the higher amount will be deducted from the team's purse.

This rule can be best explained by quoting Delhi Capitals (DC) retained players and the subsequent money they were left with before the auction.

DC retained four players from their existing squad. The four retained players were Rishabh Pant, Axar Patel, Prithvi Shaw, and Anrich Nortje. DC made Pant the first retained player, Axar the second retained player, Shaw the third retained player, and Nortje the fourth retained player.  DC retained Pant for Rs 16 crore. Axar was retained for Rs 9 crore,  Shaw was offered a retention sum of Rs 7.5 crore and Nortje was retained by shelling out Rs 6.5 crore.

For retaining Pant Rs 16 crore were deducted from DC's purse.

The second player had to be retained Rs 12 crore (see above). But DC's second player (Axar Patel) was retained for 9 crores. This did not mean that the team saved Rs 3 crore on retaining Axar. Instead, the higher of the two amounts (slab fixed vs. actual amount spent by the team on retaining the player ) was deducted from the team's purse. So despite retaining Axar for Rs 9 crore IPL governing council deducted Rs 12 crore from DC's account.

The same applied to Shaw. As mentioned above, he has held back for Rs 7.5 crore. But the slab fixed for retaining the third player was Rs 8 crore. So despite offering Shaw Rs 7.5 crore, Rs 8 crore were deducted from DC's purse to retain Shaw back in the team.

For Nortje,  Rs 6.5 crore  (here the sum offered to the player was higher than the price slab) was deducted from DC's purse as against Rs 6 crore.

So DC's total deduction for retaining Pant, Axar, Shaw, and Nortje was Rs 16 crore +, Rs 12 crore + Rs 8 crore + Rs 6.5 crore which totals to Rs 42.5 crore This total was deducted from the initial amount of Rs  90 crore allocated. So, DC went into the auction with Rs 47.5 crore remaining in its purse to splurge.

Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore retained four players giving Rs 16 crore, Rs 12 crore Rs 8 crore, and Rs 6 crore to their first, second, third and fourth players respectively. So, they had Rs 42 crore from their accounts deducted and had Rs 42 crore to spend on their buys.

The higher amount rule applies only in the case of a team retaining four players.

For retaining three players, the deduction for the first player was Rs 15 crore, for the second player it was Rs 11 crore, and for the third player, it was Rs 7 crore For an uncapped player Rs 4 crore will be deducted irrespective of his retention spot.

Rajasthan Royals retained Sanju Samson as its first player for Rs 14 crore, Jos Buttler as its second player for 10 crores, and Yashasvi Jaiswal for Rs 4 crore So RR had Rs 28 crore deducted from their kitty of Rs 90 crore and they went into the auction with Rs  62 crore to spend.

While retaining its four players, CSK made Ravindra Jadeja the team's first player and MS Dhoni the second player. The move was logical as Jadeja has more years of cricket left in him and contributes with, the bat, the ball, and also in the field.  So, Jadeja has offered Rs 16 crore and Dhoni Rs 12 crore The other two players retained were Moeen Ali at Rs 8 crore and Ruturaj Gaikwad at Rs 6 crore.

Deepak Chahar had a base price of Rs 2 crore going into the auction. On day one of the auctions, when Chahar's name came up for the auction, DC and Sunrisers Hyderabad showed immense interest in acquiring the player. The intense bidding between the two teams shot Chahar's value to Rs 11 crore It was at this stage, CSK entered the bidding war to get its player back. There was a late interest shown by RR too which further escalated Chahar's value. But CSK were determined to get Chahar back and got the player by shelling out Rs 14 crore