7 Himachal players listed for IPL auction in Abu Dhabi

Seven players from the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) have been listed for the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) players’ auction scheduled to be held on December 16 in Abu Dhabi. Their names have figured on the list of registered players released on the IPL’s official website.

According to details, the HPCA players who will go under the hammer include all-rounder Mayank Dagar, right-arm fast-medium bowler Arpit Guleria, left-handed batsman Pukhraj Mann, right-arm fast bowler Divesh Sharma, right-arm fast bowler Rajat Verma, all-rounder Aryaman Singh Dhaliwal and all-rounder Mridul Saroch. The base price for all seven players has been fixed at Rs 30 lakh.

Among them, Dagar remains the most prominent name, having already featured in multiple IPL seasons. He made his IPL debut with Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2023. In 2024, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) traded all-rounder Shahbaz Ahmed to acquire Dagar for Rs 1.8 crore. He has also previously been associated with Punjab Kings, making him one of the most experienced domestic all-rounders of HPCA in this year’s auction pool.

Right-arm pacer Arpit Guleria, a resident of Kuthman gram panchayat in Shahpur subdivision of Kangra district, also brings prior IPL exposure. He was signed by Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) as a mid-season replacement during the 2023 edition after pacer Mayank Yadav was ruled out due to injury. His inclusion on the auction list comes after consistent performances in domestic cricket.

For the remaining five players — Pukhraj Mann, Divesh Sharma, Rajat Verma, Aryaman Singh Dhaliwal and Mridul Saroch — the auction represents a significant opportunity to secure their maiden IPL contracts. All have been part of HPCA’s domestic structure and have featured in state-level tournaments in recent years.

Sanjay Sharma, Director, HPCA, said that the presence of seven players from Himachal Pradesh in the auction pool reflects the state’s growing cricketing footprint, aided by improved infrastructure, competitive exposure and the HPCA’s player development programmes.