| Players Retained | Remaining Purse for Auction | RTM |
| 5 | 45 Crores | 1 (Can only RTM for an uncapped cricketer) |
The five time champions Mumbai made a big statement with their retention policy ahead of the auctions. Despite a forgettable season that gave rise to rumors of rift within the side, the management was able to keep the core of the team intact through retention. Apart from retaining their captain Hardik Pandya, the team retained ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav, Rohit Sharma and Tilak Varma. Among these players, Bumrah was retained at the highest price of 18 cr. The management also announced Hardik Pandya as the captain for the upcoming season, putting an end to all speculations over the team’s captaincy which became a focal point of controversy in the last season after Pandya replaced five time title winning captain Rohit Sharma. The retention policy has given the team 5 players who are sure-starters in the Playing XI. In fact, the team can boast of having retained the world’s best T20 batter, the world’s best bowler as well as India’s best all-rounder. Besides, Rohit Sharma, with his wealth of experience is also an asset in the IPL. Tilak Varma showed with his showing in South Africa that he is the future of India’s T20I batting.
The team will now go into the auction to be held at Jeddah with a fairly smaller purse and one Right to Match card. While the team has retained a very strong and experienced Indian core, they still have everal slots in the squad they need to fill, including Rohit Sharma’s opening partner and Jasprit Bumrah’s bowling partner. The team suffered in the last mega auction when their plans of bringing together Jasprit Bumrah and Jofra Archer didn’t materialize due to injuries to the bowlers at different points in the course of the last three years. The foreign picks by the team also flattered to deceive leading to an indifferent three year phase where they reached the playoffs only once, while finishing at the bottom of the table twice. So, Mumbai will have their task cut out at the auction table as they would look to supplement the core with talented players who can bring Mumbai back to winning ways in the coming years. The challenge, though, will be to do that with the small purse of 45 Crores.
Mumbai’s Auction Strategy ahead of IPL 2025
The team’s small purse might tie their hands when it comes to buying back released players like Ishan Kishan or trying to get the services of top players at the auction like Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer. But with a settled Indian core, it’s very likely that the team doesn’t even need the big Indian names. The team also has a Right To Match which they can only use to bring back an uncapped player to the fold, since they have retained all capped players. There are several options for Mumbai in Naman Dhir, Akash Madhwal, Nehal Wadhera and even Ayush Kamboj. It’s likely though that they will use the RTM card for Naman Dhir who finished the 2024 season with a strike rate of 177 from 7 matches for Mumbai. Dhir’s inclusion will complete the batting lineup and leave only one opening slot left for Mumbai. In the bowling lineup, not only a strong support for Jasprit Bumrah is needed but the team also would need to replenish its spin resources which haven’t looked threatening in the past few years for them. The team also needs a big hitter in the lower middle order to support Hardik Pandya, a position they haven’t been able to fill since Kieron Pollard’s retirement.
Here are some players who Mumbai can target in the auction
Jos Buttler – The English white ball captain was released by Rajasthan ahead of the auctions despite being a major run-getter for the team in the last few years. However, Buttler’s graph has gone down in the last 12 months where he has struggled with both form and injuries. While that might have contributed in Rajasthan not retaining him, it might also result in bids for him not going too high in the auction. That might make Buttler an attractive proposition for the Mumbai setup. Buttler loves to play long innings and that will complement Rohit’s attacking intent at the top of the order. Besides, Buttler has an affinity for the Wankhede top as well, having scored more than 700 runs there in 23 matches. More importantly, Mumbai will also be looking for a wicket keeper.
Marcus Stoinis – While it’s highly likely that Marcus Stoinis, with his big hitting skills and medium pace, will be much in demand at the auction, Mumbai will possibly look in his direction to sort out the middle order. Stoinis has shown that he can bat anywhere in T20s but for Mumbai, his firepower will most likely be required in the lower middle order which was once manned by Kieron Pollard. His bowling abilities will surely be important at the Wankhede.
Trent Boult – Just like Jos Buttler, Trent Boult is also an ex Mumbai player who’s now in the auction pool despite successes at Rajasthan. Considering how well Boult understands the conditions at Wankhede and also provides Captain Pandya with a left-arm option who can give early breakthroughs, Mumbai can surely look to get the Kiwi back in the side.
Yuzvendra Chahal – Another name who was once at Mumbai and was released by Rajasthan ahead of the auction, Chahal has been a first choice spinner in his long IPL career. However, for some reason, his auction price has never been a big figure. If the trend remains the same, Mumbai would do quite well to pick a bowler whose record at Wankhede reads 20 wickets from 14 matches.
Besides these, Mumbai can also look to get back players like Gerald Coetzee, Piyush Chawla and Nehal Wadhera from their squad of 2024. Chawla, who’ll turn 35 soon, proved to be immensely valuable for the team in the last two seasons, picking up 35 wickets in 25 outing.
Also Read:
Chennai’s Tata IPL 2025 Auction Strategy
Bengaluru’s Tata IPL 2025 Auction Strategy
