MS Dhoni has returned to the spotlight as the Board of Control for Cricket in India announced the retention and auction rules for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. The organisers brought back the ‘uncapped player’ rule, which had existed from 2008 to 2020. The rule enables teams to buy an Indian player, who has not played international cricket in the last five years or hasn’t had a central contract, as an uncapped player.
An uncapped player can be bought for Rs 4 lakh while teams have to shell out at least Rs 11 crore to retain a capped player. The BCCI confirmed that a team can retain a total of six players through retentions and Right To Match (RTM) options. India Today has learnt that the first choice and the fourth choice will have to be paid Rs 18 crore, while the second choice and the fifth choice need to be paid Rs 18 crore and the third option Rs 11 crore. Notably, the BCCI increased the overall purse to Rs 120 crore.
IPL Retention Rules Explained
MS Dhoni was expected to retire from the IPL at the end of the 2024 season after having hinted about his swansong last year. Dhoni won the IPL 2023 title, leading the Super Kings. Dhoni stepped down as captain and handed over the baton to Ruturaj Gaikwad in 2024, but he remained tight-lipped about his future after the end of the season.
Dhoni stressed in the past that his future in the league would depend on the auction rules, as he has been conscious of not impacting the purse of the team with his position in the team.
Fans on social media have been quick to link the return of the uncapped player rule to the increased probability of MS Dhoni playing for another year in the IPL.
However, former India opener Aakash Chopra hinted how the return of the ‘uncapped player’ rule will not just benefit the Super Kings, but franchises like the Mumbai Indians and the Gujarat Titans.
“Why do you need the uncapped player rule? Because you can retain the player at Rs 4 crore. So that retention will not affect your purse,” Aakash Chopra told Jio Cinema.
“If you have to retain five players, then you will have to shell out Rs 75 crore. If you are willing to retain six players, then you will have to spend Rs 79 crore. After that your purse will become small,” he added.
“Yes, MS Dhoni is there in the discussion when we talk about the uncapped player rule. But this rule had been there since 2008. It was there until 2021. No one used it. So they removed it. Now they have brought back this rule.
“In this list, we have Piyush Chawla as well. There is Mohit Sharma. There is Sandeep Sharma. There is Vijay Shankar, Karn Sharma and even Mayank Markande. It’s a long list. Even Punjab Kings want to stop Shashank Singh, then they can,” he added.
“If you want to pay the player separately, then do it. I think the organisers have tried to bring as much parity as possible.
“Suddenly, you realise every team has one such player. I think the teams unanimously wanted this rule.
“Yes, MS Dhoni will play for Rs 4 crore. CSK would have anyways retained him,” Chopra added.
The retention and auction rules were confirmed after the governing council meeting on Saturday, September 28. A team can retain a maximum of five capped players and a maximum of two uncapped players.
