IPL 2021 auction: BCCI’s minimum 75% spending rule puts KXIP in a spot

With the IPL governing council ordering all the franchises to spend at least 75% of the purse allocated to them in the upcoming auction, Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) find themselves in a tight spot.

KXIP have the highest purse balance of all the eight franchises - INR 53.2 crore. They released as many as nine players ahead of the auction, including big names like Glenn Maxwell, Sheldon Cottrell and Jimmy Neesham.

So far, KXIP have invested INR 31.8 crore for 16 players. They can fill a maximum of nine spots in the upcoming auction. However, as per the 75% rule, KXIP will now be required to spend a minimum of INR 31.7 crore in IPL 2021 auction, which is scheduled to be held on February 18 in Chennai.

In the event of the franchise being unable to spend the minimum amount mandated by the IPL governing body, the deficit will go to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

A top BCCI official was quoted as saying in an InsideSport report:

“All teams have to spend minimum amounts, and we have kept the threshold levels at 75% of the 85 Cr player purse as the minimum amount that franchises will have to spend. This has been the norm with IPL auctions in the past as well.”

KXIP had a forgettable IPL 2020 campaign

Despite some fabulous individual performances, KXIP had a disappointing run in IPL 2020, which was held in the UAE. They missed out on the playoffs, as they finished sixth in the league table, gathering only 12 points from 14 games.

The franchise’s skipper KL Rahul ended as the leading run-getter of IPL 2020, with 670 runs at a strike rate of 129.34, a tally that included one hundred and five fifties.

His opening partner Mayank Agarwal also did well, scoring 424 runs in 11 matches. However, most of the other KXIP players turned out underwhelming performances.

KXIP current squad: KL Rahul, Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, Nicholas Pooran, Mandeep Singh, Sarfaraz Khan, Deepak Hooda, Prabhsimran Singh, Mohammed Shami, Chris Jordan, Darshan Nalkande, Ravi Bishnoi, Murugan Ashwin, Arshdeep Singh, Harpreet Brar, Ishan Porel