The IPL 2025 mega auction is ever so close now and there is tangible excitement among fans. However, it seems there are a fair share of surprises too.Last week, a shortlist of 574 cricketers was prepared by the BCCI and sent to the IPL franchises.

The tug of war over Jofra Archer’s involvement in next year’s IPL has ended with him being picked up by Rajasthan Royals for £1.2m in an auction of unprecedented excess that saw India’s Rishabh Pant bought for a record figure of near £2.

If the chat is true and Jofra Archer has indeed added himself to the list for this weekend’s Indian Premier League mega auction then it will come as a slap in the face to England and their hopes of winning the Ashes in Australia next winter.