IPL auction top trends- 6 Australians sold for ₹45.70 crore:5 uncapped Indians bought for ₹45 cr; Prashant Veer, Kartik Sharma get mammoth salary hike

The IPL 2026 mini auction, held on Tuesday in Abu Dhabi, revealed several interesting trends ahead of the new season. A total of ₹215.45 crore was spent on 77 players, including 48 Indian and 29 overseas cricketers, while many big names surprisingly went unsold. Indian uncapped players emerged as the biggest winners of the auction. Franchises showed strong faith in domestic talent, spending heavily on young players with potential, especially those who could contribute in more than one department. Australian players also attracted big money, once again proving their value in the IPL market. The IPL 2026 mini auction once again showed that youth, versatility and power-hitting are the biggest currencies in modern T20 cricket. IPL 2026 mini-auction summary: KKR, CSK dominate Out of the 77 players sold, teams picked 23 fast bowlers, 9 spinners, 12 wicketkeepers, 10 batters and 23 all-rounders. Kolkata Knight Riders bought the most players (13), while Punjab Kings bought the least (4). Mumbai Indians spent the lowest amount at just ₹2.20 crore. Notably, star names like Steve Smith, Devon Conway and Maheesh Theekshana failed to find buyers, raising eyebrows across franchises. Also read: From Prashant Veer to Kartik Sharma: Fairy tale scenes from families as uncapped Indian players headline in IPL 2026 mini-auction | WATCH Top trends in IPL 2026 mini-auction Trend 1: Dominance of all-rounders and fast bowlers All-rounders ruled the auction. Out of 23 sold, 12 became crorepatis, with six crossing the ₹5 crore mark. Fast bowlers were also in demand, as 32 bowlers were sold and 13 of them became crorepatis. Two pacers alone fetched a combined ₹27.20 crore. Wicketkeeper-batters impressed as well. Twelve were sold for ₹38.60 crore, with ten becoming crorepatis. Spinners, however, struggled, as only nine were sold and just three crossed ₹1 crore. Trend 2: Uncapped Indians headline in the mini-auction Among the 48 Indian players sold, 39 were uncapped. Despite lacking international experience, ₹45 crore was spent on the top five uncapped players. Two of them crossed ₹14 crore, creating a new IPL record for uncapped players. Hyderabad also picked Australian uncapped all-rounder Jack Edwards for ₹3 crore. In total, ten uncapped players became crorepatis. Trend 3: Power hitting became a key skill Power hitting played a major role in big bids. Only four batters crossed ₹10 crore, Cameron Green, Kartik Sharma, Prashant Veer and Liam Livingstone, all boasting T20 strike rates above 150. Lucknow Super Giants paid ₹8.60 crore for Josh Inglis despite his limited availability, purely due to his explosive batting ability. Also read: Focus on Suryakumar Yadav, Shubman Gill’s form: India hold 100% win record in T20Is at Lucknow; can they take 3-1 series lead? Trend 4: No buyers for veteran T20I stars Several experienced players went unsold, including Devon Conway, Gerald Coetzee, Maheesh Theekshana and Mujeeb Ur Rahman. Steve Smith was also ignored despite his past success as an IPL captain. Trend 5: Australians command big purse value Six Australian players were sold for ₹45.70 crore, averaging over ₹7.50 crore per player. Cameron Green became the most expensive overseas player in IPL history after KKR bought him for ₹25.20 crore. Sri Lankan players fetched ₹24 crore, while South Africans received the lowest prices overall.