IPL 2025: CSK Mega Auction Strategy; Which Players Will They Target?

Probuddha Bhattacharjee

MS Dhoni and Ruturaj Gaikwad [Source: @CricCrazyJohns/x.com]MS Dhoni and Ruturaj Gaikwad [Source: @CricCrazyJohns/x.com]

The hype for the next edition of the Indian Premier League has been building for about a month. The fans were excited and eagerly anticipated the retention lists of their favourite teams. The IPL 2025 retention lists came out on October 31, giving the fans an idea of how the franchises are strategising for the upcoming season.

The Chennai Super Kings went about their business the usual way. They tried to retain their core and kept options open to buy back a few of their main players during the IPL 2025 Mega Auction.

Before moving ahead, here is a look at the retention list of CSK, the slots left and their remaining budget -

Player
Retention Cost
Ruturaj Gaikwad₹ 18 Cr
Ravindra Jadeja₹ 18 Cr
Matheesha Pathirana₹ 13 Cr
Shivam Dube₹ 12 Cr
MS Dhoni₹ 4 Cr

Maximum Slots - 20
Purse Remaining - ₹ 55 Cr
RTMs Available - 1 (Capped/Uncapped)

What Will Be CSK’s Plan For The IPL 2025 Mega Auction?

  • Opener - CSK will seek an established opener to pair up with Ruturaj Gaikwad. They have always tried to form a solid, stable and consistent opening pair, and that has been one of their biggest strengths over the years. There is a chance that CSK will try to repurchase or use Devon Conway's RTM. If they somehow fail to buy Conway, they will go after a stable and steady opener during the auction.
  • All-rounders— Chennai Super Kings often look to fill their team with a plethora of all-rounders. The management feels comfortable having players who can contribute effectively in both innings of the game.
  • An Overseas Pacer along with Indian Pacers— Over the years, CSK has tried to keep one overseas pace option in their squad along with a few Indian Pacers. 
  • Quality Spinners— CSK has always relied on its spinners to perform well. Playing most of its matches on the slowish track of the MA Chidambaram Stadium, the five-time champions try to have as many spin bowling options as possible. 

Budget Allocation and Prime Target Players For CSK In IPL 2025 Mega Auction

Devon Conway for CSK [Source: @mufaddal_vohra/x.com]Devon Conway for CSK [Source: @mufaddal_vohra/x.com]

Opening Slot 

Expected Spent - INR 8-10 Cr

Prime Target 

Devon Conway - Base Price  INR 2 Cr

Backups 

Devdutt Padikkal - Base Price INR 75 Lakhs, Zak Crawley - Base Price INR 1 Cr, Tom Latham - Base Price INR 1.5 Cr.

All Rounders

Expected Spent - INR 20 Cr

Prime Targets

Romario Shepherd - Base Price INR 1.5 Cr, Moeen Ali - Base Price INR 2 Cr, Sam Curran - Base Price INR 2 Cr, Daryl Mitchell - Base Price INR 2 Cr, Mitchell Santner - Base Price INR 2 Cr, Marus Stoinis - Base Price INR 2 Cr.

Backups

Krunal Pandya  - Base Price INR 2 Cr, Mehidy Hasan Miraz  - Base Price INR 1 Cr, Rajvardhan Hangargekar - Base Price INR 30 Lakhs, Nishant Sindhu - Base Price INR 30 Lakhs, Shahbaz Ahmad - INR 1 Cr.

Overseas Pacer

Mustafizur Rahman for CSK [Source: @HustlerCSK/x.com]Mustafizur Rahman for CSK [Source: @HustlerCSK/x.com]

Expected Spent - INR 7-8 Cr

Prime Target 

Mustafizur Rahman - Base Price INR 2 Cr, Gerald Coetzee - Base Price INR 1.25 Cr

Backups

Beau Webster - Base Price INR 30 Lakhs, Fazalhaq Farooqi - Base Price INR 2 Cr

Indian Pacers

Expected Spent - INR 5-7 Cr

Prime Targets

Deepak Chahar - Base Price INR 2 Cr, Tushar Deshpande - Base Price INR 1 Cr, Bhuvneshwar Kumar - Base Price INR 2 Cr, Mukesh Choudhary - Base Price INR 30 Lakhs, Simarjeet Singh - Base Price INR 30 Lakhs.

Backups

Prasidh Krishna - Base Price INR 2 Cr, Sandeep Warrier - Base Price INR 75 Lakhs, Jaydev Unadkat - Base Price INR 1 Cr.

Spinners

Expected Spent - INR 8-10 Cr

Prime Targets

Maheesh Theekshana - Base Price INR 2 Cr, Allah Ghazanfar - Base Price INR 75 Lakhs, Ravichandran Ashwin -  Base Price INR 2 Cr.

Backups

Rahul Chahar - Base Price INR 1 Cr, Nangeyalia Kharote - Base Price INR 75 Lakhs, R Sai Kishore - Base Price INR 75 Lakhs.

Conclusion

This CSK auction plan has been prepared considering how they have approached auctions in previous years. They might adopt a new plan, but in general, they look to repurchase the players who have already played for them. Thus, this could well be how CSK goes about buying the players during the IPL 2025 Mega Auction.