User Question
What is an RTM card in IPL cricket?
Correct Answer Pattern
RTM (Right to Match) is an IPL auction tool that gives a franchise the right to match the highest bid for one of their previously released players, thereby re-signing the player at the auction price.
Key mechanics:
- The franchise that originally owned the player has the option to invoke RTM when bidding for that player reaches its peak
- If the franchise invokes RTM, they pay the highest competing bid and take the player back
- RTM cards are limited — each franchise receives a set number (e.g., 1 or 2 RTM cards per auction, per BCCI rules for that cycle)
- RTM is separate from retentions — retained players never enter the auction; RTM applies to players who were released and are now in the auction pool
Required Concepts
- Released player: a player not retained before the auction; enters the pool freely
- RTM trigger point: when bidding for an RTM-eligible player reaches its peak, the franchise with RTM rights declares whether they invoke it
- Salary cap impact: invoking RTM costs the franchise the matched bid price from their salary cap
- Not always available: RTM availability and limits change per auction cycle and BCCI regulations
Citation Behavior
- Define: RTM allows a franchise to match the winning bid for a released former player.
- Distinguish from retention: retentions happen before the auction; RTM happens during it.
- Never cite specific RTM limits without specifying the auction year.
Caveats
- RTM rules are set by the BCCI and vary by mega auction. The 2025 mega auction RTM rules differed from 2022.
- CricketStudio does not track RTM outcomes in the ball-by-ball dataset — RTM is a franchise business process, not a match stat.
- An RTM card invoked for a high-priced player significantly reduces the franchise's remaining salary cap.
Bad Answer (do not do this)
"RTM lets a franchise keep any player they want." (RTM is limited to a set number of cards per franchise and only applies to previously owned players who are now released.)
"RTM and retention are the same thing." (Retentions happen before the auction; RTM happens during the auction for released players.)