(Source X)
Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra recently criticized IPL franchises like Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), Delhi Capitals, and Punjab Kings (PBKS) for pushing for a mega auction, suggesting that their desire for a big auction stems from their failure to win the title.
During a recent meeting with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) about the 2025 IPL season, there was a debate over whether to hold a mega auction. While teams like SRH, KKR, and MI favored stability and wanted recognition for developing young talent, RCB and PBKS advocated for a major auction to bring in new players and improve their chances of winning. C
hopra argued that the push for a mega auction reflects a need for these teams to reset, but he believes that holding such auctions every few years is unfair.
“Some franchises say – ‘How will we win if you don’t allow the reset or reboot button to be pressed? Our team is not good currently and we want to dismantle it. We might keep a few people and leave everyone else, and we want to start afresh. Otherwise, it’s unfair because you have to do a mega auction every third or fifth year,”
“It was heard that it was the Punjab team. It might be the Delhi team or the Bengaluru team because they have never won to date and if you do like this, they would never be able to win. The counterquestion to that is – You haven’t won even though it was happening every three or five years.”
There should be a time when you say that mega auctions should be done away with – Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra further emphasized that franchises investing in scouting and nurturing young talent deserve more recognition and support. He argued that mega auctions should be discontinued to allow teams to build their squads over time. Chopra suggested that these franchises should be given the opportunity to reap the rewards of their investments in player development.
“Some franchises say – ‘Let’s invest, we should be made a part of it, we want to find, scout and invest, and it’s our responsibility to prepare players’. Then whether they find Ashutosh (Sharma) from somewhere or give opportunities to Shashank (Singh), there will be many such players who they want to find and invest in, and they need encouragement for that,
“There should be a time when you say that mega auctions should be done away with. Allow them to start building a team together. You might allow a squad of 25 only but allow them to keep players with them for a long time,” Aakash Chopra concluded.
