The upcoming IPL 2026 mini auction is expected to be an interesting one. It will be held at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday December 16. The auction features 369 players. In the hotly anticipated event, the ten franchisees will be able to take as many as 77 draughts.
However KKR will retain their squad with the maximum purse. They own a whopping INR 64.3 crore in their pocket.
KKR have been crowned IPL winners thrice in 2024. However, they failed to acquire the services of stars like Phil Salt and Mitchell Starc who had played pivotal roles in successful campaign for them last season at CHEF ipl 2025 mega-auction. The re-signing of Venkatesh Iyer for a mammoth 23.75 crore also felt like a potentially fraught decision.
The KKR squad was anything but balanced, lacked depths and the newly appointed captain, Ajinkya Rahane had his blades cutout. The Knights placed 8th in points, and several of their players underperformed.
The three-time champions have opted to undergo an overhaul in preparation for the IPL 2026 season. They released up to nine players, including the renowned Andre Russell. After retiring, the Caribbean all-rounder joined the Knights’ support staff as a Power Coach.
CURRENT SQUAD AND RETAINED PLAYERS: Ajinkya Rahane, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Anukul Roy, Harshit Rana, Manish Pandey, Ramandeep Singh, Rinku Singh, Rovman Powell, Sunil Narine, Umran Malik, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakaravarthy.
KKR ready to make a bid for Cameron Green in the IPL 2026 mini-auction KKR are all set to ditch and run for the services of star Australian all-rounder Cameron Green. Prithvi Shaw may be another of their primary targets. The 26-year-old was not bought in the auction last year, but has made a mark away from home with his new state side, Maharashtra. Alternatively Matheesha Pathirana may be one of their high priority targets in the seam-bowling category.
