File photo of MS Dhoni (right) and Tushar Deshpande.© BCCI
The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 auction is getting closer and the excitement regarding the retention policy -- that is yet to be announced by the Board of Control for Cricket India (BCCI) -- is also increasing. How many retentions will the Board allow and what will be the maximum count of overseas stars that could be retained by each franchise? Such questions have taken the fore, however an official word from the BCCI regarding the new policy is still awaited. Notably, IPL 2025 auction is set to take place in December this year.
The BCCI was expected to announce the retention policy by the end of August but it is likely to be delayed further, stated Cricbuzz in a report. It added that the franchises could be given time until November 15 to finalize their picks.
Around a month ago, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) CEO Kasi Viswanath had denied the reports that the franchise asked the BCCI for a reintroduction of a now-scrapped rule to rope in MS Dhoni at a lower price during retention.
Earlier in IPL, an international player after five years of his retirement would be named in the 'uncapped' category. However, this rule was abolished after IPL 2021. Several reports stated that CSK want that rule to back as it would help them retain Dhoni as an 'uncapped' player, which means at a price as low as Rs 4 crore. The franchise had retained Dhoni for a price of 12 crore in 2022. However, CSK CEO Viswanath refuted the claims of the franchise made any such request.
The latest report on IPL retention policy stated that in fact it is the BCCI which is considering to put the retired players in the 'uncapped' category. The report added that bringing back such a policy will not only help Dhoni and CSK, but also the league.