IPL 2026 Auction: Mumbai Indians (MI) will enter the IPL 2026 mini-auction with the smallest purse among all ten teams at Rs 2.75 crore. The five-time champions released nine players but retained a strong core, including Hardik Pandya, Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma. Notable departures include Reece Topley, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Lizaad Williams and last season’s promising spinner Vignesh Puthur. The franchise has opted for stability rather than a rebuild. MI’s roster includes versatile overseas players such as Ryan Rickelton, Will Jacks, Corbin Bosch and Mitchell Santner. Ahead of the auction, they also traded for Sherfane Rutherford, Shardul Thakur and Mayank Markande.
With five slots remaining, including one for an overseas player, MI’s focus is expected to be on tactical additions. Priority areas include a budget-friendly Indian pacer or spinner to strengthen the bench, a backup wicketkeeper and a power-hitter in the lower order. Here are five players MI could target in the IPL auction
KM Asif – The Kerala pacer leads the wicket-takers in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025–26 with 15 wickets from six innings. He also has 55 wickets from 42 IPL matches.
David Miller – The experienced South African batter offers finishing ability. He could fill the gap left by Kieron Pollard’s retirement. Miller’s power-hitting suits Wankhede Stadium, but his base price of INR 2 crore may stretch MI’s limited funds.
Akash Madhwal – MI could re-sign the right-arm seamer who recorded the best bowling figures in IPL playoff history in 2023.
Anmolpreet Singh – The Punjab batter has scored 241 runs from seven innings in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy at a strike rate of 172.14. His hard-hitting ability strengthens the middle and lower order.
Mukul Choudhary – The 21-year-old wicketkeeper-batter from Rajasthan could bolster MI’s wicketkeeping alongside Ryan Rickelton and Robin Minz.
Tejasvi Singh – The 23-year-old wicketkeeper-batter impressed in the Delhi Premier League 2025 with 339 runs from ten innings at a strike rate of 190.45.
MI are expected to remain selective during the auction in Abu Dhabi. Their strategy will focus on uncovering undervalued domestic talent and making calculated high-value picks.
Mumbai Indians Retained Players: Allah Ghazanfar, Ashwani Kumar, Corbin Bosch, Deepak Chahar, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Mayank Markande (T), Mitchell Santner, Naman Dhir, Raghu Sharma, Raj Angad Bawa, Robin Minz, Rohit Sharma, Ryan Rickelton, Shardul Thakur (T), Sherfane Rutherford (T), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Verma, Trent Boult, Will Jacks
Released Players: Satyanarayana Raju, Reece Topley, KL Shrijith, Karn Sharma, Bevon Jacobs, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Lizaad Williams, Vignesh Puthur, Arjun Tendulkar (traded)
Remaining Purse: Rs 2.75 crore
Slots remaining: 5 (1 overseas)