The tug of war over Jofra Archer’s involvement in next year’s IPL has ended with him being picked up by Rajasthan Royals for £1.2m in an auction of unprecedented excess that saw India’s Rishabh Pant bought for a record figure of near £2.52m.

The auction for the 2025 season – known as a mega-auction because teams are able to retain a maximum of six players, leading to a high turnover of players – is taking place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Sunday and Monday.

Archer was one of five England players to get a deal on the opening day, with more to go under the hammer on Monday. It continues an uncertain period of back and forth between England, with whom Archer has one-year remaining on his central contract, and the IPL over whether he will play in the tournament.

Archer was a late entry to the auction on Friday, having initially not been listed. Archer was prepared to miss this season to prioritise his long-awaited return to Test cricket – a format he has not played since early 2021 – but new IPL rules meant that if he skipped 2025, he would be banned from the 2026 and 2027 editions, too. So, through gritted teeth, England allowed him to enter, knowing they could hardly deny him the huge financial opportunity that two IPLs represent in a short career.

Archer previously played for Rajasthan and Mumbai Indians. The two franchises entered a bidding war for him, with the Royals winning, picking him up for INR 12.5 crore. England will still have the right of veto over his involvement come the spring if they feel he is carrying injuries after the Champions Trophy, which is due to take place in Pakistan in February and March. Archer has enjoyed six strong months of fitness with England, from the T20 World Cup to the recent white-ball tour of the Caribbean.

Archer’s lofty price tag was emblematic of a punchy auction. After seven seasons with the Royals, England’s white-ball captain Jos Buttler was picked up by Gujarat Titans for £1.5m (INR 15.75 crore). Ahmedabad-based Titans are owned by private equity firm CVC Capitals and have Englishman Vikram Solanki as director of cricket.

England’s Liam Livingstone was brought by Royal Challengers Bangalore for £826,000 (8.75 crore), while Harry Brook was picked up for £590,000 (6.25 crore). Phil Salt will join Royal Challengers Bangalore for £1.09m (11.5 crore). Jonny Bairstow initially went unsold, but will hope to be picked up on day two, alongside a host of other English players.

Shortly after India batsman Shreyas Iyer was bought by Punjab Kings for a record-breaking INR 26.75 crore (£2.5m), Lucknow Super Giants spent 27 crore on Pant. Iyer had captained Kolkata Knight Riders to their third IPL title this year, but was released, leading to a punchy bidding war, only for Pant, the brilliant wicketkeeper-batsman, to top that figure.

There were also huge deals for India bowlers Arshdeep Singh (Punjab), Mohammed Siraj (Gujarat) and Mohammed Shami (Sunrisers Hyderabad), as well as all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer (KKR), who had an underwhelming spell with Lancashire this season.

The record for the highest bid was previously held by Mitchell Starc, who saw a significant drop in his value, as he was picked up by Delhi Capitals, but his Australia team-mate Josh Hazlewood enjoyed a big payday at RCB, as did New Zealand’s Trent Boult at Mumbai Indians.