IPL Auctions Day 1: What they did and what they need

Lucknow Super Giants

Current squad strength: 12

Purse remaining: INR 14.85 Crore

Total slots available: 13

Overseas slots available: 4

Retained players: Nicholas Pooran (21 Cr), Ravi Bishnoi (11 Cr), Mayank Yadav (11 Cr), Mohsin Khan (4 Cr), Ayush Badoni (4 Cr)

Players bought in the auction: Rishabh Pant (27 Cr), David Miller (7.5 Cr), Aiden Markram (2 Cr), Mitchell Marsh (3.4 Cr), Avesh Khan (9.75 Cr), Abdul Samad (4.2 Cr), Aryan Juyal (30 lakh)

What they did: Lucknow Super Giants made the most expensive buy in the history of the IPL, getting Rishabh Pant for INR 27 Crore in the first round. They also got David Miller for INR 7.5 Crore, having shown interest in Jos Buttler, Mohammed Shami and Yuzvendra Chahal. They were economical in the subsequent rounds. Having roped in Aiden Markram at his base price of INR 2 Crore, they got Mitchell Marsh for INR 3.4 Crore. They bid for Jake Fraser-McGurk, R Ashwin, Venkatesh Iyer and Jitesh Sharma but didn't persist. The Super Giants showed interest in the fast bowlers' round, bidding for Josh Hazlewood, Anrich Nortje, Jofra Archer and Trent Boult. But they didn't buy any overseas bowlers in this round while they managed to get Avesh Khan for INR 9.75 Crore. LSG picked Abdul Samad (INR 4.2 Crore) and Aryan Juyal (INR 30 Lakh) among the uncapped players.

What they need: The Super Giants currently have a congested middle order and don't have a proper opening option yet. They will look to fill that gap on Day 2 with a mix of domestic and overseas options – several of whom are yet to appear in the auction – and might also look at a couple of spin options to support Ravi Bishnoi, who currently is the only front-line spinner in the line-up. A couple of all-rounders may also be on the cards for the Super Giants.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru

Current squad strength: 9

Purse remaining: INR 30.65 Crores

Total slots available: 16

Overseas slots available:5

Retained players: Virat Kohli (INR 21 Cr), Rajat Patidar (INR 11 Cr), Yash Dayal (INR 5 Cr)

Players bought in the auction: Phil Salt (INR 11.50 Cr), Jitesh Sharma (INR 11 Cr), Liam Livingstone (INR 8.75 Cr), Josh Hazlewood (INR 12.50 Cr), Rasikh Dar (INR 6 Cr), Suyash Sharma (INR 2.60 Cr)

What they did: RCB arrived on the opening day of the auction with the second biggest purse having retained just the three players. They had to effectively rebuild an entire team, one that was evidenced in them entering bidding battles for as many as 23 players. They were able to land their first player – Livingstone – after failing in their pursuits of their first seven bids. Interestingly, they were expected to be in the race for the three big Indian players – Rahul, Pant or Shreyas Iyer – available but didn't push to try their luck with either. Instead, they signed two keeper-bats in Salt and Jitesh. They went far in their quest to sign Venkatesh Iyer and ultimately lost out to KKR.

They also missed out on getting former RCBian Mitchell Starc but succeeded in signing his Australia teammate Josh Hazlewood. Rasikh Dar's signing for INR 6 Crore could yet prove to be a shrewd one while Suyash Sharma was the lone specialist signing. Curiously enough RCB didn't try to use RTM on either Mohammed Siraj or Glenn Maxwell, even when the latter was taken up for a substantially low price.

What they need: Substantial squad-building work remains to be done for RCB, who will have the highest purse going into Day 2. For starters, they'll need a middle-order batter preferably a southpaw given they have five right-handers in the setup. They will need variety with their overseas combination and at least one more Indian batting option along with backups for multiple positions.

Rajasthan Royals

Current squad strength: 11

Purse remaining: INR 17.35 Crore

Total slots available: 14

Overseas slots available: 4

Retained players: Yashasvi Jaiswal (18 Cr), Sanju Samson (18 Cr), Dhruv Jurel (14 Cr), Riyan Parag (14 Cr), Shimron Hetmyer (11 Cr) Sandeep Sharma (4 Cr)

Players bought in the auction: Jofra Archer (12.5 Cr), Wanindu Hasaranga (5.25 Cr), Maheesh Theekshana (4.40 Cr), Akash Madhwal (1.20 Cr), Kumar Kartikeya (30 Lakh)

What they did: With six players retained, it was a rather relaxed day at the auction table for the Royals. With the core of their batting already retained, the franchise kept their interest in the bowlers. However, barring an INR 12.5 Crore bid for Jofra Archer, they weren't willing to stretch their purse for too many other players on the opening day of the auctions. They did put up a fight to bring back Trent Boult but eventually lost out to Mumbai Indians. Among the more interesting of their purchases were the bids for two Sri Lankan spinners, for whom they combined to splurge INR 9.6 Crore. The quality of spinners isn't questionable but it's a rarity for franchises to go big on foreign spinners, especially given that Royals had arguably the best Indian spin attack in the last cycle.

What they need: After the first day, they are still without a second opener and have a couple of slots left to fill in the lower middle order, especially an additional power-hitter to support Shimron Hetmyer. Similarly, despite bringing in the services of Jofra Archer and Hasaranga, they would look to strengthen their bowling attack further, much like offering some back-up strength to their batters.

Delhi Capitals

Current squad strength: 13

Purse remaining: INR 13.80 Cr

Total slots available: 12

Overseas slots available: 4

Retained players: Axar Patel (16.50 Cr), Kuldeep Yadav (13.25 Cr), Tristan Stubbs (10 Cr), Abishek Porel (4 Cr)

Players bought in the auction: Mitchell Starc (11.75 Cr), KL Rahul (14 Cr), Harry Brook (2 Cr), Jake Fraser-McGurk (9 Cr, RTM), T Natarajan (10.75 Cr), Karun Nair (50 lakh), Sameer Rizvi (95 lakh), Ashutosh Sharma (3.80 Cr), Mohit Sharma (2.20 Cr)

What they did: DC had a really good day at the auction table. Having not retained a pacer, they needed to assemble a fast-bowling unit and they were onto it right away by putting in a winning bid of INR 11.75 Crore for Mitchell Starc, their first buy of the day which they achieved by staving off stiff bids from KKR first and then DC. Later they added T Natarajan and Mohit Sharma, a fine duo of Indian pacers who can bowl at either end of the innings and who will allow them to play overseas batting picks in their Playing XI. The requirement of another Indian wicketkeeper and an opening partner for the incumbent Abhishek Porel saw them outbid CSK to snap up KL Rahul for INR 14 Crore. They used one of their capped player's RTM to get back Jake Fraser-McGurk, another option for the opening slot. The middle order, which already had the likes of Tristan Stubbs and Axar Patel, now also has Harry Brook and Ashutosh Sharma, with Sameer Rizvi and Karun Nair there to serve as possible back-ups.

What they need: Going into Day 2, DC would be looking to add an offspinner to their squad along with another gun overseas fast bowler and all-rounders.

Sunrisers Hyderabad

Current squad strength: 13

Purse remaining: INR 5.15 Crores

Total slots available: 16

Overseas slots available: 4

Retained players: Heinrich Klaasen (INR 23 Cr), Pat Cummins (INR 18 Cr), Travis Head (INR 14 Cr), Abhishek Sharma (INR 14 Cr), Nitish Reddy (INR 6 Cr)

Players bought in the auction: Ishan Kishan (INR 11.25 Cr), Mohammed Shami (INR 10 Cr), Harshal Patel (INR 8 Cr), Rahul Chahar (INR 3.2 Cr), Adam Zampa (INR 2.4 Cr), Abhinav Manohar (INR 3.2 Cr), Simarjeet Singh (INR 1.5 Cr), Atharva Taide (INR 30 lakh)

What they did: Having retained the core of their team from last season's run to the final, SRH went about looking to get back an Indian group of fast bowlers. They won a bid for Arshdeep Singh but saw the World Cup-winner go back to PBKS after an RTM use. They overcame that loss by signing the last two winners of the Purple Cap, Shami and Harshal Patel. Another big signing was that of 'keeper-bat Ishan Kishan to bolster the top-order while Abhinav Manohar arrived as a finisher. SRH didn't always feature a frontline spinner in their XI at most times last season and managed to add an Indian (Chahar) and an overseas option (Zampa) to give Cummins the luxury of choosing his balance.

What they need: With the least purse available, SRH won't be fishing in any luxurious pond. They will need one more batter and could even have a slot there for one overseas option. They'll have to do with a bunch of base price picks for backups.

Chennai Super Kings

Current squad strength: 12

Purse remaining: 10.05 Cr

Total slots available: 13

Overseas slots available:3

Retained players:Rinku Singh (13 Cr), Andre Russell (12 Cr), Sunil Narine (12 Cr), Varun Chakaravarthy (12 Cr), Harshit Rana (4 Cr), Ramandeep Singh (4 Cr)

Players bought in the auction:Angkrish Raghuvanshi (3 Cr), Quinton de Kock (3.60 Cr), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (2 Cr), Venkatesh Iyer (23.75 Cr), Mayank Markande (30 L), Anrich Nortje (6.50 Cr), Vaibhav Arora (1.80 Cr)

What they did: With a small purse after retaining six players, Kolkata Knight Riders were always going to find it hard to go big on their targets. They made attempts to get back their title-winning captain Shreyas Iyer and Mitchell Starc but were outbid eventually. However, they sprung a massive surprise by going all out for Venkatesh Iyer, on whom they managed to splurge an eye-catching INR 23.75 Cr. Anrich Nortje was brought in as their new leader of the pace attack and KKR managed to get back the likes of Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Angkrish Raghuvanshi and Vaibhav Arora in their bid to get the title-winning squad back as much as possible. They made attempts to get Phil Salt back as well but were outmuscled and Quinton de Kock was drafted in as one of the overseas wicketkeeper-batters.

What they need: Only one team will enter the second day with a lesser purse than KKR. Their first-choice overseas core is already ready in all likelihood and the focus will be on bolstering that middle order with a couple of Indian players. An overseas pacer as a backup to Nortje, another Indian seamer, an Indian wicketkeeper and a couple of Indian pacers will all be on their agenda.

Punjab Kings

Current squad strength: 12

Purse remaining: 22.50 Cr

Total slots available: 13

Overseas slots available: 5

Retained players:Shashank Singh (4 Cr), Prabhsimran Singh (4 Cr)

Players bought in the auction:Shreyas Iyer (26.75 Cr), Nehal Wadhera (4.20 Cr), Vishnu Vinod (95 L), Marcus Stoinis (11 Cr), Glenn Maxwell (4.20 Cr), Yuzvendra Chahal (18 Cr), Harpreet Brar (1.50 Cr), Arshdeep Singh (18 Cr), Vijaykumar Vyshak (1.80 Cr), Yash Thakur (1.60 Cr)

What they did: On expected lines, PBKS had quite a busy day on the auction table making quite a few eye-catching purchases. On top of that list was Shreyas Iyer who broke the all-time auction record briefly by fetching INR 26.75 Cr. Securing Iyer for such a huge price meant losing out on Rishabh Pant. But they did manage to secure the very first player who was auctioned on the day – Arshdeep Singh. The left-arm pacer was purchased via RTM for INR 18 Cr and the tournament's leading wicket-taker, Yuzvendra Chahal, was also bought for the same price. They will be pretty pleased with the fact that they had to spend only INR 4.20 Cr for their reunion with Glenn Maxwell. Another Australian, Marcus Stoinis, is expected to have a big role in the team after a whopping INR 11 Cr was spent on him. Local boys Nehal Wadhera and Harpreet Brar were secured as well and on the pace front, Yash Thakur and Vijaykumar Vyshak were added to the ranks.

What they need: Given they have so many overseas slots to fill, PBKS will be looking for the ideal player to slot in at No.7 who can bowl and bat. An RTM on Sam Curran cannot be ruled out in that case given their requirement