James Coles (Getty Images) The Hundred Auction 2026 brought a lot of surprises as franchises spent heavily to secure the best talent for the upcoming season. While some big names went unsold, several players attracted massive bids, underscoring the growing financial strength of England’s 100-ball league. However, when discussions of record auctions begin, it is hard to ignore the Indian Premier League (IPL), which continues to dominate the cricket economy with staggering player salaries every season. The IPL 2026 auction once again saw franchises spend millions on star players, surpassing the spending in most other leagues.
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The Hundred vs IPL 2026 auction: 10 most expensive players comparedTop 10 Buys in 2026 (converted to INR)James ColesLondon Spirit Rs 390,000 Rs 4.8 croreTom CurranMI London Rs 260,000 Rs 3.2 croreAdil RashidSouthern Brave Rs 250,000 Rs 3.08 croreHeinrich KlaasenManchester Super Giants (Pre-Signed) £300,0025 RootWelsh Fire Rs 240,000 Rs 2.95 CroreDan LawrenceSunrisers Leeds 210 000 Rs 2.58 croreScott CurrieBirmingham Phoenix Rs 210,000 2.58 croreAiden MarkramManchester Super GiantsJo 4 Rs 200.0Man0chester £200.0Man0chester Super Giants 200,000 Rs 2.46 croreJames VinceMI London Rs 190,000 2.34 crore The biggest buy of the auction was James Coles who secured a deal worth approx. Rs 4.8 crore with London Spirit. The inclusion of England stars like Joe Root, Adil Rashid and international players like Heinrich Klaasen and Aiden Markram underlines the growing competitiveness of the league.
Top 10 Buys in IPL 2026 Auction
Cameron GreenKolkata Knight Riders (KKR)Rs 25.20 CroreMatheesha PathiranaKolkata Knight Riders (KKR)Rs 18 CrorePrashant VeerChennai Super Kings (CSK)Rs 14.20 CroreKartik SharmaChennai Super Kings (CSKLiamdera0Rs) (SRH)Rs 13 CroreMustafizur RahmanKolkata Knight Riders (KKR)Rs 9.20 croreJosh InglisLucknow Super Giants (LSG)Rs 8.60 croreAuqib NabiDelhi CapitalsRs 8.40 croreRavi croVenkasthan Royalsthan2Rash IyerRoyal Challengers Bengaluru 7.00 croreThe IPL once again dominated the financial charts, with Cameron Green emerging as the most expensive player at Rs 25.20 crore, almost five times the highest bid in The Hundred.
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IPL vs hundred: Huge financial gap
A quick comparison shows the difference in scale between the two leagues:
- Highest Salary: Rs 4.8 lakhs
- Highest IPL Salary: Rs 25.20 crore
This means the top IPL player earned more than 5 times more than the highest paid player in The Hundred. The reason for this huge gap is the broadcasting rights of the IPL, which is much more popular globally than The Hundred, and with higher franchise income, the IPL is one of the biggest funded T20 Leagues.
