The player's auction for the next year's Indian Premier League (IPL) will be held in Kochi on December 23, a BCCI official said on Wednesday.
The Turkish city of Istanbul, Bengaluru, New Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad were also in contention to host the auction but, the BCCI eventually opted for the coastal Kerala city.
"Logistically, and considering the dates, Kochi turned out to be the most suited option," a BCCI official told PTI.
Unlike the last auction, this year's will be a mini-auction. The 10 IPL franchises have already been asked to submit their list of retained players by November 15.
Also, the salary cap is likely to be increased from Rs 90 to Rs 95 crore for the 2023 season, in addition to what's remaining in the franchises' purse.
After last year's auction, Punjab Kings had the most money left over - INR 3.45 crore, while Lucknow Super Giants had spent it all. The Chennai Super Kings had INR 2.95 crore left, followed by Royal Challengers Bangalore INR 1.55 crore, Rajasthan Royals are left with INR 0.95 crore, and Kolkata Knight Riders INR 0.45 crore. Last year's champions Gujarat Titans have INR 0.15 crore left over.
Earlier in February, the IPL had a massive auction in which 204 players were purchased (out of a maximum possible 217 slots that were open).
There were 107 cap players and 97 uncapped players. The total amount invested was Rs 551.7 crores. The sold players were distributed as follows: 137 Indians and 67 overseas players.
