James Anderson in IPL Auction, Jofra Archer Not Shortlisted

James Anderson, 42 made the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) auction shortlist while England fast bowler Jofra Archer did not. Archer, who has battled injuries and aims to return to Test cricket was initially on the longlist. It remains unclear whether he opted out or the IPL excluded him from the shortlist. If Archer, 29 wants to play Test cricket in 2025, he will likely need to compete in County Championship matches for Sussex in early summer which overlaps with the IPL.

Archer, who won the IPL’s Most Valuable Player award in 2020 has made a comeback in white-ball cricket after recovering from back and elbow injuries but still hopes to feature in Test matches against India and the 2025-26 Ashes series in Australia. England batter Joe Root and fast bowler Mark Wood also missed the auction which will take place on November 24-25. The IPL auction list shrank from 1,574 entries to 574 after the 10 IPL teams consulted. All centrally-contracted England players could enter.

Under new rules, the IPL will not allow players who previously participated but are not on the auction list to play in the 2025 and 2026 seasons. This includes Archer, Wood, Root and Test captain Ben Stokes whose absence had already been reported. Anderson, who retired from international duty in July and has not played T20 cricket since 2014, set a reserve price of £117,000.

England’s white-ball captain, Jos Buttler is among the 81 players in the auction with the highest reserve price of around £187,000. The 2025 IPL dates remain pending, though this year’s tournament ran from March 22 to May 26.

England-qualified players in IPL 2025 auction:

Jos Buttler, Liam Livingstone, Harry Brook, Jonny Bairstow, Phil Salt, Sam Curran, Adil Rashid, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Ben Duckett, James Vince, Moeen Ali, Will Jacks, Tom Banton, Sam Billings, Jordan Cox, Gus Atkinson, Tom Curran, Ollie Pope, Richard Gleeson, Reece Topley, Luke Wood, Leus du Plooy, Michael Pepper, Jacob Bethell, Brydon Carse, Dan Mousley, Jamie Overton, Olly Stone, Dan Worrall, Matthew Potts, John Turner, Dan Lawrence, James Anderson, Chris Jordan, Tymal Mills, David Payne, Benny Howell.