Top 5 most expensive Indian players of IPL 2026 Auction ft. Kartik Sharma

The IPL 2026 auction took place in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, December 16. While overseas stars like Cameron Green and Matheesha Pathirana went for big money, franchises splurged with an open heart on Indian players as well.

The ten franchises together spent a combined amount of ₹215.45 crore on 77 players, including 29 overseas players. Surprisingly, Indian uncapped domestic players fetched bigger bids than capped stars at the IPL 2026 auction.

Franchises spent a lot on domestic talent, which gave a clear picture of the importance of performing in domestic cricket and getting rewarded at the bigger stage.

On that note, here are the top five most expensive Indian players of the IPL 2026 auction.

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#5 Rahul Chahar/Mangesh Yadav

Leg-spinner Rahul Chahar was acquired by the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for ₹5.2 crore. He played just one game for SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) last season and bowled just one over. Chahar was released ahead of the IPL 2026 auction. Overall, he has played 79 games in the tournament and has bagged 75 wickets at an average of 28.66 and an economy of 7.72. He is likely to benefit from bowling in spin-friendly conditions in Chennai.

Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) roped in uncapped all-rounder Mangesh Yadav for ₹5.2 crore as well. He is a left-arm pacer who plays for Madhya Pradesh. RCB looked to add variety and solid backup to their pace attack with his inclusion.

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#4 Venkatesh Iyer

RCB also made a key buy, bringing in India all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer for ₹7 crore. He did not have a great season in IPL 2025 and was released by the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). However, RCB showed faith in his abilities and were firm in their choice.

Notably, Iyer smashed a 43-ball 70 in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) 2025-26 on the day of the IPL 2026 auction itself. He has a decent record in the league, having scored 1468 runs from 62 games at a strike rate of 137.32 with a century and 12 half-centuries.

With this buy, RCB strengthened their batting with a solid Indian option and a left-hander who can bat anywhere from numbers one to six in the line-up.

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#3 Ravi Bishnoi

With multiple teams looking for a leg-spinner and a lesser supply of players with the profile, Ravi Bishnoi was expected to fetch a good price at the IPL 2026 auction. He was released by the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) after the previous season.

CSK, SRH, and Rajasthan Royals (RR) got into a bidding war for Bishnoi, with the Royals finally making the winning bid of ₹7.2 crore. He has had a decent run with Gujarat in the SMAT 2025-26 so far, picking up nine wickets from seven matches at an average of 23.11 and an economy of 8.72.

Notably, Bishnoi hails from Rajasthan and will therefore feature for his home team in the upcoming IPL edition. Bishnoi has 72 wickets from 77 matches in the league to date.

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#2 Auqib Nabi Dar

Jammu & Kashmir pacer Auqib Nabi Dar was one of the highlights of the IPL 2026 auction. The right-arm pacer became the second-most expensive Indian player and was acquired by the Delhi Capitals (DC) for ₹8.4 crore. RR, RCB, and SRH were also among the teams that bid for the pacer.

Auqib has performed exceptionally well season after season in domestic cricket. He has shown spectacular form in the ongoing SMAT 2025-25. In seven games, the pacer has bagged 15 wickets at an average of 13.26 and an economy of 7.41. Overall, in 34 T20s, he has 43 scalps at an average of 21.81 and an economy of 7.74.

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#2 Prashant Veer/Kartik Sharma

Prashant Veer and Kartik Sharma, the two uncapped stars, stole the show at the 2026 auction. CSK broke the bank to acquire both players and went all out. They roped in both players for a massive amount of ₹14.2 crore each. Not only were they the most expensive players of this auction, but they also created history by becoming the joint most expensive uncapped players in the IPL auction ever.

Prashant Veer is a 20-year-old all-rounder from Uttar Pradesh. He smashed 320 runs from just 10 games in the UPT20 League 2025 at an impressive strike rate of 155.34. In the SMAT 2025-26, he has scored 112 runs from six innings so far and has also picked up nine wickets.

On the other hand, Kartik Sharma is a wicketkeeper-batter from Rajasthan. The 19-year-old has solid numbers in domestic white-ball cricket. He has scored 445 runs from nine List-A games and 334 runs from 12 T20s at a strike rate of 162.92.

Edited by Rishab Vm