Will Ben Stokes be eligible to be part of IPL 2026 auction?

England's Test captain and star all-rounder Ben Stokes has not registered for the IPL 2025 mega auction, which will be held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on November 24 and 25. A total of 1,574 cricketers have signed up for the player auction, with Stokes being the prominent name missing from the long list.

The injury-prone 33-year-old cricketer had pulled out of the 2024 IPL as well to 'manage workload and fitness'. Stokes was purchased by Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for a whopping ₹16.25 crore at the auction ahead of the IPL 2023 season. He ended up playing just two games during the season due to fitness issues.

As per IPL's revised player regulations for the period 2025-2027, 'Any Overseas Player will have to register for the Big Auction (mega auction). In case the overseas player doesn't register, then he will be ineligible to register in the following year’s player auction'.

Going by the rule book, the seasoned England cricketer won't be eligible to be part of the IPL 2026 mini-auction. As per a report in ESPNcricinfo, exceptions could only be made 'in case of injuries and/or medical conditions confirmed by the player's home board'.

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What is Ben Stokes' record in the IPL?

Stokes has featured in 45 IPL matches so far, scoring 935 runs at an average of 24.61 and a strike rate of 133.95, with two hundreds and as many fifties. With his medium pace, he has claimed 28 wickets at an average of 35.43 and an economy rate of 8.64.

The England all-rounder represented the now-defunct Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS) in IPL 2017. He was part of Rajasthan Royals (RR) from 2018 to 2021 before joining Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in 2023. Stokes was among the players released by CSK ahead of the IPL 2025 auction.

The left-handed batter slammed 103* off 63, representing Rising Pune Supergiant against Gujarat Lions (GL) during the 2017 season in Pune. The terrific knock featured seven fours and six sixes as RPS won the match by five wickets.

The star England cricketer also hammered an unbeaten 107 off 60 balls for Rajasthan Royals against Mumbai Indians (MI) in Abu Dhabi during the IPL 2020 season. The southpaw's knock included 14 fours and three sixes as RR chased down a target of 196 with eight wickets in hand in 18.2 overs.