'IPL is getting stronger in many ways' - Irfan Pathan lauds BCCI's new rule for absconding overseas players in IPL

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) revealed the revised retention rules ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auctions, on September 28. The board decided to up the player retention cap from four to six with the uncapped player too making the cut. The Impact player rule does stay, but the new terms for the foreign players are being lauded by former India pacer Irfan Pathan.

Pathan was vocal about the disorganized behaviour of certain overseas players who were bought by the franchise owners and remained absent citing various reasons. BCCI stated that a player who indulges in these practices shall be banned from participating in the tournament for two years. The Baroda all-rounder quipped that IPL is getting “stronger”.

Also Read: BCCI's historic IPL 2025 announcement

“Last two years I kept talking abt this. it’s Great to see the decision taken by BCCI! Players who declare unavailability after being picked in the auction will now face a two-year ban. The IPL is getting stronger in many ways,” Pathan tweeted. 

Here’s Pathan’s latest post on ‘X’:  

IPL's new retention rules

With new rules coming in, a franchise can retain up to six players with a fixed slot for five capped players and one uncapped player. If a team wishes to retain all six players, then the Right to Match option will be out of the picture. Lesser the retained player's numbers, the more will be the RTM options. Moreover, there’s no limit to the maximum number of overseas players to be retained this time around.  

BCCI has also provided salary slabs for the retained players. The first three retains will get 18 crore, 14 crore, and 11 crore, respectively. The subsequent retains will be paid 18 crore, 14, and 4 crore respectively. A franchise will get 120 crore as a purse amount and if one team wishes to retain five capped players, it has to shed a total of 75 crore as default.