IPL 2021 auction: BCCI subtly issues 'Critical' warning to Punjab Kings before mega event

The IPL 2021 auction is all set to get underway on Thursday, February 18 at 3:00 PM (IST) in Chennai. Ahead of the event, the BCCI introduced several new rules that all eight IPL franchises will have to take care of at the IPL auction 2021. Among those rules, one of the most important was that every IPL franchise will have to spend a minimum of 75% of the player purse.

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IPL auction updates: Punjab Kings likely to be impacted financially due to BCCI new rule

Notably, the IPL Governing Council rounded off the player purse of each franchise at ₹85 crores which means that each owner is supposed to spend a minimum of ₹63.75 crore on buying the players. If any franchise fails to do so, the BCCI will take the deficit as a penalty. While most franchises are likely to cross the limit set by the BCCI, the newly revamped Punjab Kings could end up suffering due to the introduction of the new rule by the Indian cricket board.

The Punjab based franchise has the highest player purse of ₹53.2 crore and every side needs to have a minimum of 18 players and a maximum of 25 players in their squad with the limit for overseas players set to 8. Punjab Kings have only spent ₹31.8 crore to retain 16 players which means they will have to spend at least ₹31.95 crore to buy nine more players because if they spend anything less than that, the remaining amount will be forfeited by the BCCI.

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A top BCCI official told InsideSport that all teams have to spend minimum amounts and added that they have kept the threshold levels at 75% of the ₹85 crore player purse as the minimum amount that franchises will have to spend. The official further said that the same has been the norm with IPL Auctions in the past as well.

IPL auction 2021 date and time

After a lot of curiosity around the IPL auction 2021 date and time, the BCCI on January 27 revealed that the IPL 2021 auction will take place on February 18 in Chennai. The IPL auction 2021 live streaming will begin at 3:00 PM (IST).  Fans in Indian can tune in to the Star Sports Network to catch the live telecast of the program. The IPL auction 2021 live streaming will also be made available on the Disney+ Hotstar app and website as well as on JioTV. To catch all the IPL auction updates here.

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KXIP new name: Team to enter IPL 2021 as Punjab Kings 

In spite of having a few impressive seasons in the competition, the Punjab-based franchise of the Indian Premier League have failed to lay their hands on the coveted championship trophy. The side had an underwhelming run last year as well, where they failed to finish in the top four after the group stage. In an attempt to turn their fortunes around, they have introduced a major change in their team name. However, social media was flooded with memes minutes after Kings XI Punjab rechristened themselves into Punjab Kings. 

In the past, the league's Delhi-based franchise had also resorted to a similar move when they repositioned themselves as the Delhi Capitals from the Delhi Daredevils. While the team ultimately broke the jinx and entered their maiden IPL Final last year, Punjab also will be hoping for a similar miraculous turnaround in the forthcoming edition. 

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SOURCE: PUNJAB KINGS TWITTER