IPL 2018: Royal Challengers Bangalore undecided over Virat Kohli retention?
Mumbai: It’s nearing 2018 and with that, the 11th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is keeping the media abuzz. The salary purse for IPL teams has also been extended to Rs. 80 crore this season, that could see a lot of money could be shelled out by teams during the upcoming auctions in February.
With the return of Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) after a two-year spot-fixing ban, teams have been given the choice to retain five of their elite players from their previous squads with two options - retain three cricketers with two Right to Match (RTM) or retain two cricketers with three RTM.
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However, according to a report by Ahmedabad Mirror, teams such as Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) face a big dilemma to retain their top players such as the likes of Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers, with a new change in the IPL retention policy manual released by BCCI. The policy reads, "The deduction from salary purse in case of retention will be determined on the basis of guideline price or actual price (whichever is higher)."
With a revised salary budget of Rs 80 crore, teams will have to spend a minimum of 75 per cent from their salary cap for each edition. If a team previously opted to retain three players, 33 crores would be deducted from the salary cap of 80 crores according to the basic guideline price. If the franchise retained two or just a single player, a total of Rs 21 crore or 12 crores would be subtracted respectively.
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But the new rule now allows top players such as Kohli and de Villiers to negotiate above the default guideline price, if they aren’t satisfied with their own price tag. That could see players fetch as much as Rs 15 crore that would be accordingly deducted from the franchise's salary purse. If players aren’t satisfied with the price being quoted by their respective teams, they could opt to go under the hammer and earn a lucrative paycheque.
Despite paying the RCB skipper a total of 15 crores, only 12 crores was previously deducted from the team’s budget. However, the new policy will see teams pay the highest amount from the guideline or actual price, meaning more money spent on retentions.
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In this scenario, if RCB decide to retain three players – Yuzvendra Chahal, de Villiers and Kohli, they could disburse as much as 36 crores on retentions alone. With almost half of the money exhausted from the minimum salary cap, can teams pull together a decent squad with a meagre Rs 44 crores?
Leaving out the likes of Kohli and de Villiers would not be easy for RCB as they are world-class players and the go-to buys in the shortest format of the game. The same is with leg-spinner Chahal, whose stock is on the rise in limited-overs international cricket. But the willingness to stick with these players also come with an expense, that causes a budget headache for teams. Only time will tell if RCB decide to get rid of their star players or retain them at a cost.
