R Ashwin critical comment on IPL auction rules
RTM is a rule under which teams can automatically acquire a player who represented them in the previous season if that player matches the highest bid placed by a franchise. India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin criticised the Right to Match (RTM) rule, which could return during this year’s auction for next year’s Indian Premier League (IPL).
The auction for IPL 2025 will be held later this year. Earlier in August, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) held a constructive dialogue with the owners of the ten league franchises on various topics before formulating the IPL player rules.
Key points of discussion reported
Ahead of the meeting, the key points of discussion were reported to be: having a mega auction every five years instead of three, as it is now, reintroducing the Right-to-Match (RTM) card option in the auction, availability, lack of foreign players and cap on the total number of retentions.
RTM is a rule through which teams can automatically acquire a player who represented them in the previous season if they match the highest bid placed by a franchise. Teams used this rule in the past to acquire some valuable players, but in the 2021 mega, it was removed to give the then new franchises, Gujarat Titans (GT) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), a larger pool of players to choose from.
Ashwin said this rule is unfair to a player
There is no rule more unfair to a player than RTM. Because how has the RTM rule been so far? For example, there is a player named X. He is in a team called Sunrisers. His current price is around Rs five-six crore. He has gone in. Now let’s assume Sunrisers want to buy that player back. So, Sunrisers will bid for the player at a base price of 2 crores.
Then, let’s assume KKR and Mumbai Indians are bidding for that player. The bid goes up to 6 crores and at the end, they say, ‘The player has been sold to Mumbai Indians for 6 crores.’ So, with RTM, Sunrisers will bid and get the player for 6 crores. The problem here is that Sunrisers are happy. But KKR and MI are unhappy. The only person (party) Sunrisers is happy. Because, initially, they gave the appearance bid at the base price. This veteran spinner said that RTM is unfair because it does not give a fair price for the player.
There is no fair price
After that, there is no fair price. There is one bidder. KKR and Mumbai Indians are fighting. For one of those teams, it has gone up to six crores. What does SRH say? ‘You bought the player, right? Give the player back.’
Very unfair. Because, at this time, SRH has to bid Rs 6.20 crore, the other team Rs 6.40 crore and they should reach the fair price of the player. The problem with RTM is that it is not a fair price for the player. So, if you give three RTMs [to each team], the players will only virtually go without getting a fair price.
Allowing to retain a player by matching the highest bid
The RTM rule, which allows a franchise to retain a player by matching the highest bid during the auction, was previously used to ensure that teams could retain their valuable players. However, the rule was removed during the 2021 mega auction to allow new franchises like Gujarat Titans (GT) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) to have a wider selection of players.
As the BCCI considers reinstating it, Ashwin has openly criticised the rule, arguing that it reduces a player’s true market value by restricting the natural auction process.
Affects financial benefits
According to R Ashwin, this cap not only affects the financial benefits that players get but also limits their freedom to choose the best environment for their career growth.
Suppose, KKR and Mumbai Indians are bidding for the player. The bid goes up to 6 crores and at the end, they say, ‘The player has been sold by Mumbai Indians for 6 crores.’ So, with RTM, Sunrisers will bid and take the player for 6 crores. The problem here is that Sunrisers are happy. But KKR and MI are unhappy. The only person (side) happy is Sunrisers. Because, initially, they had given an appearance bid at the base price.
Conclusion
Ravichandran Ashwin has expressed his views on the possible return of IPL auction rule ahead of 2025 season. Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has expressed his concerns over the possible return of the Right to Match (RTM) rule ahead of the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) auction.
The BCCI held a meeting with franchise owners last month, focusing on several key topics before finalising the players’ rules for the upcoming season. Among these topics, the re-introduction of RTM cards is a major point of contention that has garnered a lot of attention, with Ashwin being one of its critics.
