JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — The Indian Premier League is the most popular and richest domestic Twenty20 cricket competition in the world.

Stadiums are heaving. Millions more are watching. Team owners are celebrities. The players from March to May are treated as rock stars.

Anybody pretty good at batting, bowling or batting and bowling wants to play.

The 10 teams build their squads through an auction. On Sunday, Rishabh Pant, India’s swashbuckling wicketkeeper-batter, became the most expensive player in the IPL’s 16-year history when the Lucknow Super Giants paid $3.2 million for his services. The auction price represents the player’s salary.

This year’s auction ahead of the 2025 season is taking place over two days in Saudi Arabia as part of a commercial deal as the kingdom extends its sports interests to cricket.

What is the IPL auction and who are the main players? | iNFOnews.ca — FILE – England’s captain Jos Buttler plays a shot against West Indies during the fourth T20 cricket match at Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium in Gros Islet, St. Lucia, on Nov. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan, File)

Remind about the IPL

Twenty20, or T20, was invented by New Zealand cricket great Martin Crowe to answer declining crowds. It’s cricket’s shortest format, fast-paced, TV friendly, and over and done with in about 3 1/2 hours, often less. After India won the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007, India cricket officials decided to launch a home T20 league in 2008. IPL teams are based on states or cities.

What is the IPL auction?

Held annually, it draws cricket’s biggest and brightest stars from all over the world. Close to 1,600 players entered, and that list was reduced to 577 for the chance to be one of the 204 players selected, of whom 70 will be foreigners.

Each team has a $14.3 million budget to pick 18 players, and a maximum of 25; only eight are allowed to come from overseas, the other 17 must be from India. In the playing XI on the field, teams are restricted to four overseas players.

Players set their base price. The highest bidder wins. That will be the player’s salary.

Every three years there is a mega auction, where teams can retain only six players and must rebuild for the next three years. This year’s is a mega auction.

Who was bought?

Pant, the youngest player to debut for India in T20s at 19 in 2017, played for Delhi Capitals his entire career, and captained them this year. But Delhi wasn’t prepared to beat Lucknow’s record IPL offer.

That offer came moments after the Punjab Kings paid a record $3.18 million for batter Shreyas Iyer, who captained Kolkata Knight Riders to the IPL title this year.

The previous record payout was $2.9 million by Kolkata last year for Australia fast bowler Mitchell Starc. But he was bought for $1.4 million on Sunday by Delhi Capitals, because Kolkata preferred to splurge $2.8 million to retain India allrounder Venkatesh Iyer.

The Gujarat Titans got England captain Jos Buttler for $1.88 million after the Rajasthan Royals couldn’t buy him back, plus South Africa fast bowler Kagiso Rabada for $1.28 million.

Fast bowlers were in high demand on Monday when the Royal Challengers Bengaluru spent $1.26 million for former India international Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who offered a base price of $24,000. Bengaluru had also bought Australia fast bowler Josh Hazlewood for $1.49 million on Sunday.

A 13-year-old top-order batter, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, became the youngest person to earn an IPL contract on Mondat. He was grabbed by Rajasthan Royals for $130,000. Suryavanshi scored a 58-ball century for India Under-19s against Australia last month.

However, James Anderson went unsold. England’s all-time leading test wicket-taker, aged 42, hasn’t played a T20 international in more than 15 years but believed he could still play.

Where’s the money from?

In 2022, U.S. media giant Walt Disney and India’s Reliance Industries’ agreed to pay more than $6 billion for the IPL broadcasting and streaming rights from 2023-27.

That made the IPL one of the most lucrative sports leagues in the world in terms of cost per game.

Disney’s Star Sports, the official broadcaster, reported an audience of 546 million for 67 of the 74 matches, setting records at every stage. Disney Star reported a best-ever 168 million TV viewers on the opening night.

Reliance-owned Viacom18 reported 620 million viewers streamed the entire 2024 season on its JioCinema, a 38% increase on 2023. The opening night drew 111 million views, up 51%.

The 2025 season

The season begins on March 14 and the final is scheduled for May 25. The schedule hasn’t been released yet but there’s a game almost every day, sometimes two.