IPL 2025 Auction: Star India wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant will enter the upcoming IPL 2025 mega auction after not being retained by the Delhi Capitals (DC), according to ESPNcricinfo. Discussions between Pant and the franchise owners reportedly broke down after several months of negotiations.
The report indicates that Delhi Capitals have decided to retain Indian spinners Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav, South African batter Tristan Stubbs, and uncapped Indian wicketkeeper-batter Abishek Porel. With these four players secured, the franchise will have Rs 73 crore available to strengthen their squad in the upcoming auction.
Pant’s potential departure has become a hot topic, especially after he took to X to question, “If I go to the auction, will I be sold, and for how much?”
The 27-year-old Pant has been with the Delhi franchise since 2016 and began captaining the team in 2021. Under his leadership, the Capitals reached their first-ever IPL final in 2020. However, last season, they narrowly missed out on the playoffs, finishing with seven wins and seven losses for a total of 14 points.
In IPL 2024, Axar Patel played 14 matches, scoring 235 runs at a strike rate of 131.28, while also taking 11 wickets at an economy rate of 24.00. Tristan Stubbs also appeared in 14 matches, amassing 378 runs with an impressive strike rate of 190.91. Kuldeep Yadav participated in 11 matches, securing 16 wickets at an economy of 8.70, and uncapped player Abhishek Porel contributed 327 runs at a strike rate of 159.51 over 14 matches.
Earlier this month, former Indian cricketers Hemang Badani and Venugopal Rao were appointed to the coaching staff of the Delhi Capitals as head coach and director of cricket, respectively, in preparation for the upcoming IPL season. Additionally, cricketing legend Sourav Ganguly has been appointed as the Director of Cricket for JSW Sports.
(With ANI Inputs)