From MS Dhoni to Cameron Green: Most Expensive Players in Each IPL Auction (2008–2026) - Full Year-Wise List

The IPL is entering its 19th season, and over all these years, a huge amount of money has been spent on several players. The IPL, for its massive purses, has often drawn players of global standards; however, several names on this list can surely amaze the fans.

The likes of MS Dhoni were among the first players to be paid the highest amount of money back in the inaugural season of 2008, and since then, the legacy has been carried forward by a mix of both Indian and overseas players.

Rishabh Pant still continues to be the costliest-ever player in the history of the IPL, as the Lucknow Super Giants skipper was bought for INR 27 crores in the 2025 mega-auction in the IPL. He was closely followed by his former Delhi teammate Shreyas Iyer, who went to the Punjab Kings for a whopping INR 26.75 crores.

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MS Dhoni to Yuvraj Singh: Here are all the highest-paid Indian cricketers in an edition of the IPL Auction

Over the years, several Indians have been bought for a massive amount in the IPL. In the inaugural season for the IPL, the former Indian skipper MS Dhoni was bought for a massive 1.5 million dollars, which was the highest for that season, from the Chennai Super Kings. Such has been his legacy that after 19 seasons, he is still part of the Yellow army.

The record set by MS Dhoni was broken when Gautam Gambhir was bought for a whopping $2.4M in the 2011 auction by the Kolkata Knight Riders. The very following season, CSK bought all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja for another whopping amount of $2M.

Yuvraj Singh shattered all records as he became the only player and is to date the only Indian player to have featured on the list of highest-paid cricketers for an entire auction twice. In 2014 and 2015, during two different seasons, he was bought for 14 and 16 crores, respectively, by the Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Delhi Capitals (then Delhi Daredevils).

The three other Indian players on the list include Jaydev Unadkat in 2019, Ishan Kishan in 2022, and Rishabh Pant in the 2025 mega-auction.

Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Cameron Green: Australians rule the highest-paid overseas charts in IPL auctions

Among the highest-paid overseas cricketers, Australians have always had the upper hand in the IPL. Though formerly it included players like Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff from England, Kieron Pollard from the West Indies, and Ben Stokes from England.

Like Yuvraj Singh, Ben Stokes is the only overseas player to have featured twice on this list, once in 2017 and then in 2018, for INR 14.5 and 12.5 crores by Rising Pune Supergiants and Rajasthan Royals.

However, the likes of Glenn Maxwell (2013), Shane Watson (2016), Pat Cummins (2020), Mitchell Starc (2024), and Cameron Green (2026) are all Australians, and they have drawn massive amounts of money over all these mentioned seasons.

Here are the highest-paid players from every IPL Auction

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