• Salary Cap raised up to $ 1 Million
• Rs. 50 mn for winner from SLC
• Only second franchise cricket league to have a player auction 
• Babar Azam, David Miller, Mathew Wade already signed up 

The Lanka Premier League (LPL) is set to introduce a player auction for the first time in its history and only the second time in the history of Franchise Cricket, as it prepares for the fourth season of the tournament. 

The auction is scheduled to take place on 11 June and will allow franchises to select a minimum of 20 and a maximum of 24 players for their squads. Each team will be permitted to have a maximum of six foreign players in their squad.

The new tournament guidelines reveal that there will be a salary cap of $ 1,000,000 for each squad, with $ 500,000 available specifically for the auction. Before the auction, teams can make four direct signings along with one right to match, or three direct signings along with two right to match options, with a maximum expenditure of $ 500,000. It is important to note that any funds left unspent before the auction will not be carried forward. In the earlier season the salary cap was only $ 300,000. 

To ensure squad stability, players will have a contractual period of three years with the respective teams. However, franchises have the option to retain or release players by mutual consent at the end of each year.

Players enlisted in the LPL auction will be categorised into two main groups; capped and uncapped players. A player will be considered capped if they have featured in the playing XI of a senior match for their country, regardless of the format (Test, ODI, or T20I). On the other hand, an uncapped player is one who has not yet made an appearance in the playing XI of a senior match for their country, even if they are part of the senior squad.

Sri Lanka Cricket has announced that the winners of LPL 2023 will be awarded a prize money of Rs. 50 million. The highly anticipated fourth edition of the Lanka Premier League is scheduled to take place from 30 July to 20 August, with matches being held at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium and Pallekele International Cricket Stadium.

With the introduction of the player auction and these new guidelines, the LPL aims to enhance the competitiveness of the tournament and provide an exciting platform for players to showcase their talent on the international stage.

Responding to the query made by The Daily Morning Sports regarding the shorter time period and moving into two venues, Tournament Director Samantha Dodanwela said: “we had to shorten the tournament duration because of two things. We had to release players for the Pakistan Test Series and then CPL is scheduled to begin in August. Because of the shorter time duration we decided to use only two venues to allow players to have breaks in between. 

SLC secretary Mohan De Silva added: “We are currently in the process of fixing flood lights to the Rangiri Dambulla Stadium. Once it’s complete we will be using that venue as well.” 

Direct Signings for the Lanka Premier League 2023

•  Jaffna Kings – David Miller, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Thisara Perera, Maheesh Theekshana
• Colombo Strikers – Babar Azam, Naseem Shah, Matheesha Pathirana, Chamika Karunaratne
• Dambulla Aura – Matthew Wade, Lungi Ngidi, Kusal Mendis, Avishka Fernando
• Galle Gladiators – Shakib Al Hasan, Tabraiz Shamsi, Dasun Shanaka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa
• Kandy Falcons – Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fakhar Zaman, Wanindu Hasaranga, Angelo Mathews