The RTM card is a tool that lets a team match the highest bid on one of its former players during the auction. This system guarantees that competitive bidding, including the highest bid on that particular player from a rival team, does not nullify the original ownership.
For example,
If Player X was a part of Team A in the previous season but is now up for auction, and Team B places the highest bid, Team A can use their RTM card to retain Player X by matching the highest bid.
Hence, this rule notably gives teams the freedom to recover individuals they most value, therefore adding a strategic aspect to the auction.
RTM Card Usage in IPL 2025 Auction
The recently held IPL 2025 auction revolved mostly around the RTM card rule. Teams that had not fully used their pre-auction retention slots used their respective RTM cards to guard their former players during bidding.
Still, several changes had been made ahead of the auction.
Retention Limits
Before the auction, each team could retain up to six players, with a maximum of five capped players and two uncapped Indian players.
Unused Retentions
Teams that did not use all six retention slots gained RTM cards proportional to the number of unused slots.
Bidding Dynamics
Unlike previous seasons, after using an RTM card, the original bidder now has one last chance to increase their bid. If the original team matches the updated bid, the player is retained. Otherwise, the player goes to the final bidder.
How did RTM work in the IPL 2025 auction?
The IPL 2025 Auction featured a typical scenario for a Mumbai Indians player named Naman Dhir.
- His name went up for the auction.
- The rival teams bid for the player.
- Eventually one team had outbid others, and he should have been on his way out of the Mumbai Indians (MI).
- And although MI exercised their RTM to match the highest bidder, the highest bidder could have made another offer to walk away with the player, according to the new rule.
- However, the rival team chose not to do so, and MI successfully retained him.
List of Players Retained Using RTM Card in 2025 IPL Auction
Sr. No. | Player | Bidding Amount | Type | Team |
1 | Ruturaj Gaikwad | Rs. 18 crore | Capped | Chennai Super Kings |
2 | Ravindra Jadeja | Rs. 18 crore | Capped | Chennai Super Kings |
3 | Matheesha Pathirana | Rs. 13 crore | Capped | Chennai Super Kings |
4 | Shivam Dube | Rs. 12 crore | Capped | Chennai Super Kings |
5 | MS Dhoni | Rs. 4 crore | Uncapped | Chennai Super Kings |
6 | Rachin Ravindra | Rs. 4 crore | Capped | Chennai Super Kings |
7 | Rinku Singh | Rs. 13 crore | Capped | Kolkata Knight Riders |
8 | Varun Chakravarthy | Rs. 12 crore | Capped | Kolkata Knight Riders |
9 | Sunil Narine | Rs. 12 crore | Capped | Kolkata Knight Riders |
10 | Andre Russell | Rs. 12 crore | Capped | Kolkata Knight Riders |
11 | Harshit Rana | Rs. 4 crore | Uncapped | Kolkata Knight Riders |
12 | Ramandeep Singh | Rs. 4 crore | Uncapped | Kolkata Knight Riders |
13 | Sanju Samson | Rs. 18 crore | Capped | Rajasthan Royals |
14 | Yashasvi Jaiswal | Rs. 18 crore | Capped | Rajasthan Royals |
15 | Riyan Parag | Rs. 14 crore | Capped | Rajasthan Royals |
16 | Dhruv Jurel | Rs. 14 crore | Capped | Rajasthan Royals |
17 | Shimron Hetmyer | Rs. 11 crore | Capped | Rajasthan Royals |
18 | Sandeep Sharma | Rs. 4 crore | Uncapped | Rajasthan Royals |
19 | Virat Kohli | Rs. 21 crore | Capped | Royal Challengers Bengaluru |
20 | Rajat Patidar | Rs. 11 crore | Capped | Royal Challengers Bengaluru |
21 | Yash Dayal | Rs. 5 crore | Uncapped | Royal Challengers Bengaluru |
22 | Swapnil Singh | Rs. 50 lakhs | Uncapped | Royal Challengers Bengaluru |
23 | Shubman Gill | Rs. 16.5 crore | Capped | Gujarat Titans |
24 | Rashid Khan | Rs. 18 crore | Capped | Gujarat Titans |
25 | Rahul Tewatia | Rs. 4 crore | Uncapped | Gujarat Titans |
26 | Shahrukh Khan | Rs. 4 crore | Uncapped | Gujarat Titans |
27 | Sai Sudharsan | Rs. 8.5 crore | Capped | Gujarat Titans |
28 | R. Sai Kishore | Rs. 2 crore | Capped | Gujarat Titans |
29 | Axar Patel | Rs. 16.5 crore | Capped | Delhi Capitals |
30 | Kuldeep Yadav | Rs. 13.25 crore | Capped | Delhi Capitals |
31 | Tristan Stubbs | Rs. 10 crore | Capped | Delhi Capitals |
32 | Abishek Porel | Rs. 4 crore | Uncapped | Delhi Capitals |
33 | Jake Fraser-Mcgurk | Rs. 9 crores | Capped | Delhi Capitals |
34 | Mukesh Kumar | Rs. 8 crores | Capped | Delhi Capitals |
35 | Nicholas Pooran | Rs. 21 crore | Capped | Lucknow Super Giants |
36 | Ravi Bishnoi | Rs. 11 crore | Capped | Lucknow Super Giants |
37 | Mayank Yadav | Rs. 11 crore | Capped | Lucknow Super Giants |
38 | Mohsin Khan | Rs. 4 crore | Capped | Lucknow Super Giants |
39 | Ayush Badoni | Rs. 4 crore | Uncapped | Lucknow Super Giants |
40 | Shamar Joseph | Rs. 75 lakhs | Capped | Lucknow Super Giants |
41 | Naman Dhir | Rs. 5.25 crores | Uncapped | Mumbai Indians |
42 | Jasprit Bumrah | Rs. 18 crore | Capped | Mumbai Indians |
43 | Suryakumar Yadav | Rs. 16.35 crore | Capped | Mumbai Indians |
44 | Hardik Pandya | Rs. 16.35 crore | Capped | Mumbai Indians |
45 | Rohit Sharma | Rs. 16.3 crore | Capped | Mumbai Indians |
46 | Tilak Varma | Rs. 8 crore | Capped | Mumbai Indians |
47 | Arshdeep Singh | Rs. 18 crore | Capped | Punjab Kings |
48 | Shashank Singh | Rs. 5.5 crore | Uncapped | Punjab Kings |
49 | Prabhsimran Singh | Rs. 4 crore | Uncapped | Punjab Kings |
50 | Pat Cummins | Rs. 18 crore | Capped | Sunrisers Hyderabad |
51 | Abhishek Sharma | Rs. 14 crore | Capped | Sunrisers Hyderabad |
52 | Nitish Reddy | Rs. 6 crore | Uncapped | Sunrisers Hyderabad |
53 | Heinrich Klaasen | Rs. 23 crore | Capped | Sunrisers Hyderabad |
54 | Travis Head | Rs. 14 crore | Capped | Sunrisers Hyderabad |
Advantages of the RTM Rule in IPL Auctions
The RTM card rule guarantees a strategic and balanced auction process by virtue of many advantages:
- Teams can now retain core players, thereby guaranteeing consistency and familiarity within the team.
- Teams can now see the bidding patterns and deliberately deploy RTM cards to hold important players.
- This regulation also guarantees that teams do not lose important players because of financial limitations.
Impact of RTM Cards on IPL Auctions
The mechanics of the auction are considerably changed with the inclusion of RTM cards since:
- The RTM rule adds a layer of strategic intricacy, which makes auctions more erratic and interesting.
- Teams now aggressively consider the advantages of keeping a player versus the expense of using an RTM card. This influences their decision-making on a whole new level.
- By retaining top players, teams build a long-term relationship with fans and buy their loyalty.
FAQs
In fact, the number of RTM cards a team possesses depends on the number of players retained pre-auction. Retaining fewer players results in more RTM cards.
RTM cards only apply to players on the team last season and meet retention rules. Consequently, overseas players are generally not eligible.
Above all, the RTM card allows teams to retain players from their previous squad by matching the highest bid during the auction.