The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a well known change who’s life young cricketers can have today. At the 2025 IPL mega auction held in Jeddah Saudi Arabia records were broken and new ones were set. The most surprising of them all was Jitesh Sharma getting a ₹11 crore heft salary hike, which the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) bought him for. His salary had risen 5500 percent from 20 lakh rupees.
Jitesh Sharma’s Quick Rise
Jitesh Sharma’s rise has been impressive. In 2022, he made his debut in IPL with Punjab Kings (PBKS). During his first two seasons he had hurtled over the line well and frequently. strike rate 2022 – 163, strike rate 2023 – 156. In 2023, he accumulated 21 sixes on the way to making the cut in Indian T20I squad as a wicketkeeper and finisher. As Shikhar Dhawan went down injured, he also got added as the vice captain.
Why Did RCB Spend Big on Jitesh?
After the retirement of Dinesh Karthik, RCB were in the market for a new wicketkeeper – batter. As a finisher and wicketkeeper, Karthik had been part of the team. Jitesh’s replacement, Karthik is being viewed as a good fit for the team. He knows he can play vital innings if he has to, because there are stars like Virat Kohli and Rajat Patidar, who are up top, who can take the core out of the batting.
Other Big Winners in the Auction
But Jitesh Sharma’s IPL auction salary hike was not the biggest, while other players got a big leap in terms of salary. There was also a big winner in all rounder Venkatesh Iyer. Iyer returned at a cost of ₹23.75 crore to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), a huge rise of ₹15.75 crore from last year when he earned ₹8 crore. Iyer gained the second most in terms of salary.
Conclusion
The 2025 IPL auction reshaped the careers of several players in all those ways. The most surprising, though is Jitesh Sharma 5500% salary hike, which proves that IPL can help a player change his career in no time. Cricket could have made Venkatesh Iyer famous and wealthy but his story, along with the likes of Dube and many others, is the story of the auction which makes any cricketer famous and funds them.
