IPL Retention: Franchises set to shell out Rs 75 crore to retain five key players

NEW DELHI: The IPL Governing Council has decided to permit each franchise to retain up to five players and utilize one Right to Match (RTM) ahead of the upcoming mega auction, according to sources.The IPL retention structure for the upcoming auction sets specific price caps for each retained player. The first player that a franchise retains will cost Rs 18 crore, the second retention will cost Rs 14 crore, and the third retention will be Rs 11 crore.The amounts will be deducted from the team's total auction purse, leaving less for further squad building.However, if a franchise chooses to retain a fourth and a fifth player, the costs rise once again. The fourth retention will incur a deduction of Rs 18 crore, and the fifth retention will cost Rs 14 crore.This creates a situation where, if all five retentions are used, a franchise will have spent Rs 75 crore.With a total auction purse of Rs 120 crore, retaining five players leaves just Rs 45 crore to assemble the rest of the squad, which typically includes up to 20 players."The first retention will cost Rs 18 crore followed by second retention of Rs 14 crore and third retention of Rs 11 crore. However if a franchise opts for fourth and fifth retentions, they will again have to pay Rs 18 crore and Rs 14 crore respectively," a senior BCCI and IPL governing council member told PTI on conditions of anonymity."So any franchise opts for all five retentions, then will have only Rs 45 crore to buy or even use their Right To Match (RTM) card to buy another 15 players and prepare a squad. There is no cap on Indian and Overseas retentions. "We introduced more deductions for retentions four and five to ensure level playing field. You can go ahead and retain five but then you will have less than Rs 50 crore to deal with at auction table. "Also if franchises opt for only three retentions, then more star value will be added to auction and some of the teams with lesser strength can set their house in order. The idea is to have a good competition," the source added.One needs to note that retention price is only a deduction from the team purse for the auction but it may or may not be the actual salary of the player which is a player-franchise separate contract.This presents a significant challenge for teams to balance star retentions with maintaining enough budget for squad depth and versatility.Also Read: IPL Retention Rules: Governing Council to meet on Saturday, announcement soon