Piyush Chawla enters SA20 auction after retirement from professional cricket

Piyush Chawla enters SA20 auction after retirement from professional cricket

Piyush Chawla Enters SA20 Auction Along with 12 Other Indian Players

The cricketing world was taken by surprise when the 36-year-old former India National Cricket Team and Mumbai Indians (MI) leg-spinner, Piyush Chawla, announced his retirement from professional cricket on June 6, 2025. However, it seems like Chawla is not quite ready to hang up his boots just yet, as he has now registered himself for the upcoming SA20 auction in South Africa. He is not the only Indian player to enter the auction, as there are 12 more compatriots who will be vying for a spot in the tournament.

Piyush Chawla’s Illustrious Career

During his career spanning over two decades, Piyush Chawla made significant contributions to Indian cricket. He represented India in three Tests, 25 ODIs, and seven T20Is. Chawla was also a prominent figure in the Indian Premier League (IPL), playing 192 matches for four different teams – Mumbai Indians (MI), Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Punjab Kings (PBKS), and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). Notably, he was part of India’s T20 World Cup-winning squad and ODI World Cup-winning squad.

Despite his desire to play in the IPL 2025, Chawla went unsold in the auction and was last seen in action in the World Championship of Legends. However, his retirement from Indian cricket now makes him eligible to participate in overseas leagues, with SA20 being his latest target.

Other Indian Players in SA20 Auction

Aside from Piyush Chawla, 12 more Indian players have thrown their hats in the ring for the SA20 auction. The list includes Mahesh Ahir (Gujarat), Sarul Kanwar (Punjab), Anureet Singh Kathuria (Delhi), Nikhil Jaga (Rajasthan), Mohamed Faidh (state not mentioned), KS Naveen (Tamil Nadu), Ansari Marouf (state not mentioned), Imran Khan (UPCA), Venkatesh Galipelly (state not mentioned), Atul Yadav (UPCA), Siddarth Kaul (Punjab), and Ankit Rajpoot.

The base price for Piyush Chawla has been set at 1,000,000 Rand, while the other Indian players have a base price of 200,000 Rand, except for Imran Khan, who has a base price of 500,000 Rand. Notably, Dinesh Karthik, the current Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) coach, is the only Indian player to have featured in SA20 thus far.

SA20 Auction Details

The SA20 Season 4 Player Auction is scheduled to take place in Johannesburg on Tuesday, September 9, with a total of 784 players signed up for the event. Among them, 40 Pakistani players, including Azam Khan, Imam-ul-Haq, Abrar Ahmed, and Saim Ayub, have registered for the auction. Additionally, 150 players from England are also part of the lineup.

Teams participating in the SA20 auction have been allocated a salary cap of R41 million to spend on players, making it the highest franchise T20 League salary cap outside of India. Each team will have 19 player slots in their final squad, including a Wildcard entry.

With the anticipation building up for the SA20 auction, cricket fans around the world are eagerly waiting to see which players get picked by the various teams and how they will perform in the upcoming season.

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