The who, what and how much of the IPL 2013 auction

Which players are going to be a part of the 2013 IPL auction?
The 2013 IPL auction will feature new names as well as those cricketers who were let go by the franchises when they announced a list of players they had retained and released in keeping with the October 31, 2012, deadline.

The original Hyderabad-based franchise, Deccan Chargers, was terminated from the IPL in October. That led to a new team, SunRisers Hyderabad, being formed, and they retained 20 players from the Chargers franchise and released the remaining 13.

How much money can the teams spend at the auction?
Each franchise can spend up to $12.5 million on their 2013 squad. The franchises have already spent a portion of that sum on the players they retained in November 2012, and on the ones they traded/signed in the transfer window that closed on January 18. The franchises can now spend the remainder of the amount during the auction.

In 2008, every franchise had $5 million as the auction purse. In 2011, that was increased to $9 million. But there was no restriction on what was spent outside of the auction and, last year, there were few high-value trades outside of the auction - for example Dinesh Karthik went from Kings XI Punjab to Mumbai Indians for a million. Subsequently, many franchises complained about the big money being spent outside of the auction purse. So the IPL decided that this year, instead of just regulating the amount being spent at the auction, they would set a consolidated sum of $12.5 million for the franchises' entire 2013 squads.

For how long will the players, who are bought on Sunday, be able to play for the franchise that buys them?
The players signed on Sunday will be available to play for their respective franchises only in this year's IPL.

The contracts of the players who are already with franchises will also end this year. When the players were signed in 2011, the contracts were for two years with the option of extending them for an extra year. The 2014 auction will see more players being auctioned as new contracts will be signed.

Is there a cap on the maximum amount a franchise can bid for any player, and will there be a tie-breaker this year too?
In effect, there is no cap on bids for any player. The teams can spend whatever amount they want on procuring a player, based on how much of their $12.5 million purse they have remaining.

Yes, the tie-breaker rule still exists. As per this rule, if two franchises submitted the same maximum bid for the same player, they must then submit a cheque with an undisclosed amount to the BCCI - this money comes from outside of the $12.5 million purse. The franchise whose cheque offers the higher amount gets the player and the undisclosed amount goes to the BCCI.

How many players in total, and overseas players, can each franchise have?
Each franchise can have a total of 33 players, including 11 from overseas. The squad size was increased from 30 to 33 before the 2012 IPL auction. When it was 30, 20 Indian and 10 overseas players were allowed. However, in the final XI, only four overseas players can be included.

Can overseas players be bought outside the auction?
Under normal circumstances, overseas players, whether capped or uncapped, can be bought only at the auction. However, in case of injuries cropping up in a squad, the franchise has the right to sign an overseas player outside the auction as a replacement.

In the case of Indian players, uncapped players are signed outside the auction. Capped players, on the other hand, have to be signed at the auction. Capped Indian players can be bought outside the auction only if they are released by a franchise during the trading window. For example, Abhinav Mukund, who has played five Tests, was released by Chennai Super Kings in November and signed by Royal Challengers Bangalore in January.

What are capped and uncapped players?
A capped player is one who has played international cricket for his country in any format of the game: Tests, ODIs or Twenty20s. An uncapped player is one who is yet to make his international debut.

Why was the Deccan Chargers franchise terminated?
The Deccan Chargers franchise was terminated in October 2012 after its owners, Deccan Chronicles Holdings Limited (DCHL), failed to produce the bank guarantee that the Bombay High Court had stipulated they furnish in order to avoid termination from the league.

The franchise had defaulted on several fronts (including payments to players and foreign boards) after DCHL ran into financial problems. The BCCI, subsequently, had set a deadline of September 15, 2012, for the owners to clear all dues. Since the owners were unable to sort out their financial problems, they put the franchise up for sale. They then rejected the sole bid they received, and were unable to offer viable a solution, which eventually led to their termination.

Why is there a new franchise from the same city as Deccan Chargers, instead of from a different city?
Once Chargers were terminated, the BCCI invited bids for a new IPL franchise from one of 12 cities, including Hyderabad. The Sun TV Network won the bid, offering Rs 85.05 crores per year for a five-year deal, for a Hyderabad-based franchise.