Hyderabad: The much-awaited Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 mega auction is likely to be held on November 24 and 25 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. However, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has yet to officially announce the location or dates. According to the India Today sources, the final arrangements are in progress and an announcement is anticipated soon.
These auction dates coincide with India’s first Test match against Australia in the highly anticipated Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) in Perth, starting from November 22 to 26. Hence, there might be some scheduling complications.
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Disney Star, which holds the television broadcast rights for both the IPL and the India-Australia Test series, is keen to avoid a direct overlap between the events considering both the things can give them a huge number of viewership. Thankfully, due to the time difference with Australia, the auction, if held in the afternoon (IST), would likely avoid clashes with the match broadcast.
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The IPL 2025 auction is expected to be a blockbuster event as many big names around the globe including a few Indians among the standout names are Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Arshdeep Singh, and Ishan Kishan, each renowned for their impact in the T20 format, will be entering into the auction.
While several franchises have already declared their retention, these five players will undoubtedly be at the centre of intense bidding wars.
Reports suggest that BCCI officials have already conducted preliminary visits to Saudi Arabia to assess potential venues. A second delegation is expected to travel to the Gulf nation on Monday to finalize details. While Jeddah was initially considered, Riyadh, the capital, has emerged as the most likely host city for the two-day auction. The BCCI also explored other international locations like Dubai, Singapore, and even Vienna, but Saudi Arabia appears to have been selected as the ideal venue.
Given this move outside India, IPL franchises are urging the BCCI to finalize the venue and dates promptly to allow enough time for travel and logistical arrangements. With a retention deadline of October 31, teams are working to finalize their player lists before shifting focus to the upcoming auction.
