![One weak area for all 10 IPL sides [Source: AFP Photo]](https://onecricketnews.akamaized.net/parth-editor/oc-dashboard/news-images-prod/1765971685626_oneweakarea.jpg?type=hq)
One weak area for all 10 IPL sides [Source: AFP Photo]
The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 mini auction is over as all ten franchises have strengthened their squad for the next season. The auction dynamics is such that every team has made some shrewd buys and at the same time, has made a mess by going heavily on unwanted players, and not improving their loopholes from last season.
All ten sides had some or the other weakness to rectify in the mini auction, and despite spending a hefty amount, there have been grey areas that have not been identified and worked upon. In this article, we analyse one weak area that each IPL franchise possesses heading into the next season.
Chennai Super Kings (no proven death bowler)
The Chennai Super Kings had the second-highest purse heading into the mini auction, and while the five-time IPL winners strategised hiring youth players for a hefty price, they missed out on an opportunity to take a look at their biggest weakness - death bowling. While the Yellow Army has Khaleel Ahmed and Matt Henry as the two new-ball bowlers, the squad lacks a proven death-overs specialist.
With Matheesha Pathirana released, the squad failed to address the death-bowling issue and this could come back to haunt them next season.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (lack of wicket-taking spinner)
Even before heading into the mini auction, RCB had their playing XI sorted for next season, with only a few tweaks needed. One major issue that the team had to address was get a solid wicket-taking spinner, and they failed to achieve the target. There is Suyash Sharma in the squad, but he is a defensive bowler.
| Criterion | Data |
| Matches | 14 |
| Dismissals | 8 |
| Economy | 8.84 |
(Suyash Sharma in IPL 2025)
- While he did a brilliant job containing runs, but failed to pick up wickets as he only scalped 8. Krunal Pandya did the majority of the job as a spinner, as RCB once again missed out on a chance to get a solid spinner.
Mumbai Indians (no solid backups for Boult, Bumrah)
Just like RCB, the Mumbai Indians had a settled unit heading into the mini auction, and with the smallest purse on the auction table, MI did well to recruit Quinton de Kock for just 1 crore, but one key weakness was not worked upon - solid backups for Bumrah, Boult.
Apart from Jasprit Bumrah and Trent Boult, MI has Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur as the other pacers, and if Bumrah (injury-prone) misses a few games of the IPL season, the team won’t be able to replace him, as there is no solid pace-bowling backup who can threaten the opposition batters.
Kolkata Knight Riders (captaincy)
KKR had the auction purse of 64.30 crore, but despite that, a lot of their grey areas were left unaddressed, and one of them was the captaincy dilemma. Last season, they released Shreyas Iyer and replaced him with Ajinkya Rahane and made him their skipper.
The result - after winning the IPL title under Iyer in 2024, KKR failed to qualify for the playoffs under Rahane. His captaincy decisions were questionable, and while the team spent a hefty chunk of their money to buy Cameron Green, they never truly bought a captaincy material player, and that could affect their campaign once again.
Delhi Capitals (Captaincy)
Just like KKR, Delhi Capitals assembled a strong squad which looks great on paper, but one key weakness area could derail their campaign in 2026 - the captaincy. After Pant’s departure, Axar Patel was given the armband, and while he started well last season by winning the first four games, the team collapsed afterwards.
Axar’s captaincy was heavily criticised as some of his field changes and bowling change decisions haunted the franchise, and this grey area wasn’t addressed in the mini auction.
Punjab Kings (no 5th bowling option)
Punjab Kings was the most relaxed side in the IPL mini auction, and while they replaced Josh Inglis with Cooper Connolly, one small weakness area was left unaddressed - the 5th bowling option.
In Marco Jansen, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, and Lockie Ferguson, the team has a balanced four-man attack, but in T20Is, the team also needs a fifth bowler, and the team lacks depth in it. They have Vijaykumar Vyashak, but he doesn't look promising.
Rajasthan Royals (Injury-prone foreign pacers)
RR certainly has one of the best top seven in the league alongside RCB, CSK, and MI, but the problem arises in the foreign pace department. RR has Jofra Archer and Nandre Burger in the overseas pace department, and while the two pacers are promising bowlers, they have also been injury-prone.
Archer has missed quite a lot of cricket since the Ashes 2019, and Burger has also been in and out of the Proteas team due to injuries. Hence, if one of them gets injured, which could happen, the team doesn't have a solid backup.
Sunrisers Hyderabad (spin woes)
SRH has one of the most explosive batting lineups in the league, but the team’s biggest weakness is not having a wicket-taking spinner. This was their biggest headache heading into the auction, and they failed to address it.
They have Zeeshan Ansari from last season, and a couple of uncapped names, but they don’t have that one-wicket taking spinner that other franchises have.
Gujarat Titans (lacklustre middle order)
Last season, the trio of Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, and Jos Buttler scored more than 70 percent of the runs for the Gujarat Titans in the IPL, but the real problem started once the trio was dismissed. There was no one who instilled confidence in the batting order as the teams tried a plethora of options at number 4 and 5, but nothing worked for them.
In the mini auction, GT had the chance to address the middle-order woes, but instead, they spent a hefty amount on Jason Holder and a plethora of pacers, which was their least concerning thing.
In Shahrukh Khan, Washington Sundar, Glenn Phillips and Rahul Tewatia, the team doesn't have too many promising middle order batters.
Lucknow Super Giants (Injury-prone pace attack)
The Super Giants failed to learn from their mega auction mistakes and once again went after an injury-prone attack for the upcoming season. In Mayank Yadav, Anrich Nortje, Mohammed Shami, Avesh Khan, and Mohsin Khan, the LSG side has a pace attack that is known for getting injured frequently.
This was the same problem that hampered their side last season, and it could hamper them once again in IPL 2026.
.jpg?type=mq "Fizz to miss a few games for KKR")
