Are IPL players getting more expensive? Auctions data tells a different tale
Analysis shows that the median auction price paid per player in 2025 was lower than in 2018 and has not grown significantly since the first big auction in 2014.
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Rishabh Pant created history earlier this week, becoming the highest-paid cricketer to be auctioned in the Indian Premier League for Rs 27 crore.
A Moneycontrol analysis shows that the top five players fetched an average of Rs 22.7 crore in the 2025 auction compared with Rs 16.5 crore averaged last year.
The average price per player at Rs 3.51 crore was nearly 10 percent higher than the previous year and more than double the amount fetched per player a decade ago.
But the averages can be misleading. Analysis shows that the median auction price paid per player in 2025 was lower than in 2018 and has not grown significantly since the first big auction in 2014.
An average calculates the total amount spent by teams divided by the number of players sold in the auction. For instance, in 2025, the teams spent Rs 639.15 crore to purchase 183 players. However, the top 25 players in the 2025 auctions earned more (Rs 340 crore) than the other 157 players.
The average price per auction for the top 25 players at Rs 13.6 crore was more than the Rs 1.9 crore per player earned by 157 other players in the 2025 auction.
A look at the medians, however, throws up a different picture.
The 2025 auction’s median price, Rs 1.5 crore, was less than the Rs 1.7 crore fetched in the 2018 auction, when 169 players were sold for Rs 431.7 crore.
But median salaries haven't grown as much
Median earnings of IPL players don't beat inflation
Compared with 2014, when the first big auction took place where Yuvraj Singh got sold for Rs 14 crore along with 153 other players, the median price fetched by players has increased at a compounded annual growth rate of 3.75 percent since.
In 2014, the median auction price paid by teams was Rs 1 crore.
India’s consumer inflation has averaged 5 percent between 2014 and 2024 (till October).
Respite for uncapped players
The 2025 auctions also marked a change for uncapped players. Modal price or the price which was bid repeatedly by the teams to secure a player in the auction has increased for the first time in nearly eight years.
The modal price per player was constant at Rs 20 lakh between 2018 and 2024 auctions. It increased to Rs 30 lakh in the 2025 auction.
