BCCI Releases Final IPL 2026 Auction List: 1005 Players Dropped, 35 Surprise Entries and de Kock Returns

The BCCI has issued the final IPL 2026 mini-auction list, trimming the earlier pool of 1,355 names to 350 after extensive discussions with franchises.

The updated list, reported by Cricbuzz information, shows a significant overhaul that includes 35 fresh additions along with the return of South African star Quinton de Kock.

A Sharper and More Targeted Player Pool

The auction will take place on December 16 at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi at 1 pm local time, which is 2:30 pm IST. The streamlined list marks a reduction of nearly three quarters from the original submissions shared with franchises.

Among the most notable entries is Quinton de Kock, who did not feature in the preliminary list but was later proposed by a franchise. The 33 year old recently came out of international retirement and struck a century in Visakhapatnam, which revived interest in him. He enters the auction with a base price of INR 1 crore, which is half of what he commanded in the previous mega sale where he was picked by Kolkata Knight Riders for INR 2 crore before being released following an underwhelming season.

Overseas Names Strengthen The Updated Roster

The new set of international additions includes Traveen Mathew, Binura Fernando, Kusal Perera and Dunith Wellalage from Sri Lanka. Afghanistan's Arab Gul and West Indies' Akeem Auguste also appear for the first time. A few South African players such as Connor Eztherhuizen, George Linde and Bayanda Majola have also been slotted into the revised document.

On the domestic side, the BCCI has inserted several uncapped names like Vishnu Solanki, Parikshit Valsangkar, Sadek Hussain, Izaz Sawariya and others, taking the number of Indian inclusions in this category to 23.

Structure Of The Auction And Key Early Batches

The BCCI has clarified that the auction will start with capped players arranged by specialist roles including batters, all rounders, wicketkeeper batters, fast bowlers and spinners. This will be followed by uncapped players in the same format.

The opening BA1 batch includes prominent performers such as Cameron Green, Devon Conway, Jake Fraser McGurk, Prithvi Shaw and David Miller. Venkatesh Iyer features in the AL1 all rounders group.

Acceleration Phase To Shape Final Bidding Strategies

The accelerated segment of the auction is expected to begin once the 70th player is presented. That slot belongs to Afghanistan's Wahidullah Zadran. Players numbered 71 to 350 will be offered in the first acceleration round. After this, franchises will be allowed to recommend unsold or unpresented players for another rapid bidding window.

New Players Added

Overseas: Arab Gul, Miles Hammond, Dan Lategan, Quinton de Kock, Connor Eztherhuizen, George Linde, Bayanda Majola, Traveen Mathew, Binura Fernando, Kusal Perera, Dunith Wellalage, Akeem Auguste.

Indian: Sadek Hussain, Vishnu Solanki, Sabir Khan, Brijesh Sharma, Kanishk Chouhan, Aaron George, Jikku Bright, Srihari Nair, Madhav Bajaj, Shreevathsa Acharya, Yashraj Punja, Sahil Parakh, Roshan Waghsare, Yash Dicholkar, Ayaz Khan, Dhurmil Matkar, Naman Pushpak, Parikshit Valsangkar, Purav Agarwal, Rishabh Chouhan, Sagar Solanki, Izaz Sawariya, Aman Shekawat.