The release of the IPL retention rules may face further delays. Discussion among Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise owners and officials states that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) might postpone the announcement till the end of the month, according to the reports of Cricbuzz, It could even take place at the time of BCCI’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Bengaluru on 29th September.
It is worth mentioning that there is no direct connection between the AGM and IPL policies, the BCCI could still choose to surprise everyone by announcing the policy in the coming days. Meanwhile, the prevailing sentiment among IPL officials is that the announcement could take at least 10 days to two weeks. However, there has been no official communication regarding this, BCCI officials are believed to have hinted at the delay to franchises that recently inquired about the retention rules.
Taking further, the BCCI had planned to announce the policy by the end of August, as stated by Board officials after last month’s owners’ meeting in Mumbai. However, as the deadline approached, franchise officials reached out to the BCCI and were reportedly informed of a further delay, with an understanding that the announcement would come by the end of September.
Regardless of when the BCCI makes the announcement, it is now understood that franchises will have until November 15 to finalise their retention decisions. The auction, likely set for December, will certainly include the Right to Match (RTM) options as well.
The BCCI is also contemplating a controversial move to classify retired international players as uncapped, although it’s uncertain whether this will significantly impact the auction purse. This policy is not specifically aimed at categorising MS Dhoni as ‘uncapped’ to benefit the Chennai Super Kings, as it is in the league’s interest for Dhoni to play one more season.
