The two-day IPL Auction wrapped up in Jeddah on Monday with 13-year-old Indian cricketer Vaibhav Suryavanshi becoming the youngest to be sold in an IPL auction.

The young star, from the eastern Indian state of Bihar, went to the Rajasthan Royals for $130,500 after coming into the auction at a base price of $35,591.

Meanwhile, seven Afghan players were snapped up for the 2025 season.

Included was Rashid Khan who was retained by Gujarat Titans for about $2.13 million. 

Karim Janat will make his debut at the IPL and was picked up by Gujarat Titans for just over $88,000; Noor Ahmad Lakanwal was signed by Chennai Super Kings for $1.18 million; Azmatullah Omarzai was sold to Punjab Kings for $284,000; Rahmanullah Gurbaz was resigned by Kolkata Knight Riders for over $236,000; Fazalhaq Farooqi went to Rajasthan Royals for $236,000 USD); and 18 year old young spinner Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar was signed by Mumbai Indians for $568,000.

In total, 16 Afghan players had registered for the 2025 IPL auction.

Overall, big purchases on Day 2 saw veteran fast bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar go to Royal Challengers Bengaluru for $1.27-million, and Deepak Chahar went to the Mumbai Indians for $1.09-million.

Rishabh Pant broke the auction record on day one when Lucknow Super Giants got the star wicketkeeper for a whopping $3.20 million, while the Punjab Kings snapped up Shreyas Iyer for $3.17 million also on Sunday.

The final day began with a string of unsold players and some frugal buys, before South Africa’s left-arm quick Marco Jansen went to Punjab for $830,000.

The focus then turned to Indian quicks.

Mukesh Kumar went to the Delhi Capitals for $942,000, while pace bowler Akash Deep went to Lucknow for the same price.

Five-time champions Mumbai went big for Chahar, before securing 18-year-old Afghan spinner Allah Ghazanfar for $569,000.

“Very happy at this position because we have got our playing XII,” Mumbai owner Akash Ambani said.

New Zealand’s veteran Kane Williamson and all-rounder Glenn Phillips both went unsold, although they may be brought back later.

In total, 182 players were sold across the two days, which included 62 overseas players. Teams spent almost $75.72 million to buy the 182 players.

The top 10 signings were as follows:

Rishabh Pant (IND) – $3.20 million – Lucknow Super Giants

Shreyas Iyer (IND) – $3.17 million – Punjab Kings

Venkatesh Iyer (IND) – $2.81 million- Kolkata Knight Riders

Arshdeep Singh (IND) – $2.13 million – Punjab Kings

Yuzvendra Chahal (IND) – $2.13 million – Punjab Kings

Jos Buttler (ENG) – $1.87 million – Gujarat Titans

KL Rahul (IND) – $1.65 million – Delhi Capitals

Jofra Archer (ENG) – $1.48 million –  Rajasthan Royals

Trent Boult (NZL) – $1.48 million – Mumbai Indians

Josh Hazlewood (AUS) – $1.48 million – Royal Challengers Bengaluru

The supreme leader of Iran, which backs the Hamas and Hezbollah militants fighting Israel in Gaza and Lebanon, said on Monday that death sentences should be issued for Israeli leaders, not arrest warrants.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was commenting on a decision by the International Criminal Court to issue arrest warrants on Thursday for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his former defence chief and a Hamas leader, Ibrahim Al-Masri, Reuters reported.

"They issued an arrest warrant, that's not enough... Death sentence must be issued for these criminal leaders", Khamenei said, referring to the Israeli leaders.

In their decision, the ICC judges said there were reasonable grounds to believe Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant were criminally responsible for acts including murder, persecution and starvation as a weapon of war as part of a "widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population of Gaza".

The decision was met with outrage in Israel, which called it shameful and absurd. Gaza residents expressed hope it would help end the violence and bring those responsible for war crimes to justice, read the report.

Israel has rejected the jurisdiction of the Hague-based court and denies war crimes in Gaza.

The warrant for a Hamas leader, Ibrahim Al-Masri, lists charges of mass killings during the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israel that triggered the war on the long-blockaded Palestinian enclave, and also charges of rape and the taking of hostages.

Israel has said it killed Masri, also known as Mohammed Deif, in an airstrike in July but Hamas has neither confirmed nor denied this.

In a meeting on Monday in Kabul with Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Russia’s Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu said Moscow will remove the Islamic Emirate from its blacklist in order to boost political and economic ties between the two countries.

According to a statement issued by Baradar’s office, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s (IEA) name will be removed from the list in the near future.

In addition, the visiting delegation, headed by Shoigu, also voiced support for the planned Trans-Afghan railway project, that aims to improve trade and transportation between Central and South Asia.

The project includes the Trans-Afghan Corridor, a $4.8 billion railway project that connects Afghanistan and Uzbekistan to Pakistani ports.

Shoigu meanwhile also expressed readiness to commence practical economic cooperation, especially following agreements made during the Saint Petersburg Economic Forum in June this year.

The delegation further noted that Russian investors and state-owned companies are keen to invest in Afghanistan in areas such as mining, transportation, and agriculture.

Monday’s meeting was also attended by Nooruddin Azizi, Minister of Industry and Commerce; Qari Din Mohammad Hanif, Minister of Economy; Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Overchuk; Zamir Kabulov, the Russian President’s Special Representative for Afghanistan; and several other officials from both countries.

During the meeting, discussions focused on strengthening political relations, enhancing economic cooperation, increasing trade and transit activities, and encouraging Russian investments in Afghanistan.

Baradar in turn emphasized the IEA’s foreign policy and that it centered on economic priorities.

He stated that with the restoration of security and stability in Afghanistan, the country has become a hub for economic cooperation, trade, and transit in the region, benefiting not only Afghanistan but also the surrounding region.

He added that the IEA is striving to ensure the country’s security and economic growth.

To this end, it has banned the cultivation of narcotics and eliminated groups that harm Afghanistan’s and the region’s security and economy.

He said raising the level of formal relations between the two countries would create numerous opportunities for tangible progress in the economic sector.

He also stated that the IEA would play a positive role as a responsible economic partner in the region.

Both sides also stressed the need for the creation of a joint governmental commission to foster extensive cooperation in trade, transit, and investment. Under this commission, various subcommittees would also be established to work on specific areas.