The IPL 2025 mega auction, scheduled for November 24 and 25 in Jeddah, will see 41-year-old James Anderson, who announced his retirement from international cricket earlier this year, make an unexpected bid for a spot in the lucrative T20 league.

Anderson, who is currently serving as England's bowling coach, has taken many by surprise with this decision, marking a dramatic shift from his role as a player-coach. Meanwhile, Ben Stokes is notably absent from the 1574 players registered for the mega auction list. The feisty all-rounder opted out of IPL 2024 to manage his workload and fitness and suffered a hamstring injury during the hundred in August, which led him to be sidelined for two months.