What is the right-to-match (RTM) rule?
Ahead of the IPL 2025 auction, each team was allowed to retain up to six players, with a maximum of five capped players and a maximum of two uncapped Indian players.
The eight teams that did not use all of their six retentions can now use right-to-match options on players from their 2024 squads to fill up the remaining slots. The limits of five capped and two uncapped players still apply, so teams that have retained five capped players can use their RTM option on only one uncapped Indian player. And if a team has retained two uncapped players, they can use their RTM options on only capped players. If a team uses an RTM option on one of their former players at the auction, the last bidder will be allowed to raise their bid one final time, and the choice of whether to continue with the right-to-match option and match the bid then lies with the team using the RTM option.
Chennai Super Kings
Players retained: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ravindra Jadeja, Matheesha Pathirana, Shivam Dube, MS Dhoni
Purse remaining: INR 55 crore
Right-to-match option: 1 (capped or uncapped)
Since CSK have retained four capped players and one uncapped - Dhoni, who is classified as uncapped since he has not played international cricket for more than five years - they can use their remaining right-to-match option on either a capped or uncapped player. Among the capped players they will be looking at are Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, Deepak Chahar, Tushar Deshpande and Maheesh Theekshana.
Conway, 33, had a huge season for CSK in 2023, scoring 672 runs and winning Player of the Match in the final. His fellow New Zealander Ravindra made less of a splash in 2024 but has been excelling across formats and, at 24, is an investment for the future. He also bowls left-arm spin, though CSK already have Jadeja to play that role. Another choice among the overseas players is Theekshana, whose mystery spin has been effective both at Chepauk and away. He has taken 25 wickets in 27 matches for CSK and has gone at 7.66.
Chahar has been a crucial part of CSK's squad since 2016, providing consistent powerplay wickets. He has won three titles with CSK. The only thing that may count against Chahar is his injury record and his age, 32. If they cannot buy him back, they may go all out for their other Indian pacer, 29-year-old Tushar Deshpande, who has been with CSK since 2020 and has taken 38 wickets across the past two seasons.
Given their preference for continuity, CSK will probably look to buy back several of the players mentioned. Who they use their right-to-match option on could be decided by who comes up first in the auction list and is available at the right price.
Given the number of capped players in the mix, it is unlikely CSK will use their right-to-match option on an uncapped player, but if they still have it when death hitter Sameer Rizvi's name comes up, they may consider it.
Mumbai Indians
Players retained: Jasprit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rohit Sharma, Tilak Varma
Purse remaining: INR 45 crore
Right-to-match option: 1 (uncapped)
Since Mumbai Indians have retained five capped players, they can only use their one RTM option on an uncapped Indian player (so they can't use it on Ishan Kishan or Tim David). There are four interesting options: Nehal Wadhera, Akash Madhwal, Naman Dhir and Piyush Chawla.
Wadhera, 24, had a breakthrough season in 2023, playing 14 games and hitting two fifties. In 2024, he played less of a role, only getting six games and striking at less than 130. What may count against him is that MI already have three specialist batters among their retentions. Like Wadhera, Madhwal, 30, impressed in 2023, going at less than nine an over and developing a reputation as someone who could restrict and take wickets at the death. His incredible figures of 3.3-0-5-5 in the Eliminator put MI in the second qualifying final. The 2024 season was a difficult one for Madhwal: he went at 11.28 an over as MI struggled.
In his debut season, 24-year-old Naman Dhir impressed with his ability to score quickly from the off, striking at 177.21 across his seven innings in 2024. With his tall stance and high backlift, Dhir drew comparisons with Hardik Pandya. What also makes him an attractive option as an RTM is that he bowls offspin. Having not played for India for more than five years, Piyush Chawla is now classified as uncapped, meaning MI can use their RTM option on him. While his age - he is 35 - may make MI reluctant to buy him back, he has been consistent over the past two seasons, taking 22 wickets in 2023 and 13 in 2024.