Looking at the youngest and the oldest players in IPL 2026 mini-auction

Published - 16 Dec 2025, 11:36 IST | Updated - 16 Dec 2025, 12:44 IST

The highly-anticipated IPL 2026 mini-auction is set to be held at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, December 16. As many as INR 237 crore can be spent in total by the 10 franchises today in the mini-auction. Initially, 350 players were to be on the auction list, but that has now been enhanced to 369 after some last-minute additions.

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are expected to be the busiest franchise during the auction. They have released nine players, including their most expensive pick from last season - Venkatesh Iyer. On the other hand, Mumbai Indians (MI) will have a very uneventful auction as they have the least amount of money to spend - INR 2.75 crore. They already have 20 players in their squad in the lead-up to the event.

The youngest player who will be up for grabs at the IPL 2026 mini-auction is Afghanistan off-spinner Wahidullah Zadran. He turned 18 years old in November. The talented cricketer has a base price of INR 30 lakh, which is a minimum for players in the upcoming auction. The youngster has played 19 T20s, picking up 28 wickets at an average of 16.32 and a strike rate of 14.5. His economy rate is an impressive 6.72, showing that he doesn't give away too many runs. He had represented Gulf Giants in the past in the International League T20 (ILT20).

Meanwhile, the oldest player in the auction list is none other than veteran spin-bowling all-rounder Jalaj Saxena. The 39-year-old has played only one game in the IPL and it came against Delhi Capitals on April 18, 2021, at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, when he was playing for the Punjab Kings. Interestingly, Saxena celebrated his 39th birthday on December 15. In 79 T20s, he has scored 709 runs at an average of 16.11 and picked up 86 wickets, averaging 17.67. He was seen in action during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, as he played for the Prithvi Shaw-led Maharashtra. The veteran cricketer has kept his base price at INR 40 lakh.