CSK can retain franchise legend MS Dhoni as an uncapped player for Rs 4 crore.© BCCI
All 10 franchises will be allowed to retain upto six players before the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 auction. The IPL General Council members, during a meeting in Bengaluru on Saturday, decided that among those six retentions, one has to be an uncapped player. According to IPL GC's official release, at least one of the six retentions should be for an uncapped player, while the remainings five can all be Indians or overseas.
A team can hold on to the six players via the direct retention route or a combination of retention and RTM options.
If a team wants to retain five players, the first three retentions would cost them Rs 18 crore, Rs 14 crore and Rs 11 crore, respectively, from the overall purse of Rs 120 crore, which is Rs 20 crore from last year's auction.
For the last two picks, the franchises will lose Rs 18 crore and Rs 14 crore. To be precise, a team will enter the auction with Rs 45 crore if they decide to retain five players.
Also, a maximum of two uncapped players can be retained by a franchise. According to the BCCI release in ESPNcricinfo, the IPL GC has decided to stick with a salary cap for Rs 4 crore for an uncapped player.
"The IPL has decided to bring back a rule that it had instituted in 2008, allowing Indian players who had retired from international at least five years prior to go into the auction as an uncapped player. The rule, never used, was scrapped in 2021. However, during the broader discussion on uncapped players, the IPL informed the franchises that it was reviving the rule," a report highlighted.
In that case, five-time champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) can retain franchise legend MS Dhoni as an uncapped player, if they want to.
Dhoni was CSK's second pick in IPL 2022 mega auction for Rs 12 crore. Dhoni, who turned 43 in July, has only played in the IPL since his international retirement in August 2020.
However, the player has been tight-lipped about his playing future.