Did CSK use IPL rule loophole to sign Dewald Brevis?

Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra has questioned whether the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) exploited a gap in the Indian Premier League’s replacement player rules to bring in South Africa’s Dewald Brevis midway through the 2025 season. His comments came after Ravichandran Ashwin revealed that Brevis negotiated a contract with CSK for an amount higher than his base price.

Brevis was signed as an injury replacement for left-arm pacer Gurjapneet Singh, who had been bought for ₹2.20 crore at the mega auction. Brevis had gone unsold at that auction despite a base price of ₹75 lakh and was part of the Registered Available Player Pool (RAPP) — a list of unsold players available for mid-season signings.

Chopra explained that mid-season signings are paid on a pro-rata basis, depending on how much of the season remains. Under IPL rules, Brevis was entitled to at least half his base price (₹37.5 lakh) for joining mid-season, but he could be paid up to half of the injured player’s salary — in this case, roughly ₹1.10 crore.

“He missed the first match but played brilliantly afterward, even taking a stunning boundary catch,” Chopra said on his YouTube channel. “Ashwin has hinted that Brevis asked for more money. But is there a provision to pay beyond the official limit? Could the purse cap be breached? Is this a loophole?”

According to Chopra, a replacement’s pay cannot be lower than their base price and cannot exceed the salary of the player they replace. In Brevis’ case, that meant between ₹75 lakh and ₹2.20 crore.

CSK had been struggling in 2025, winning only 2 of their first 7 games, and needed a boost in the middle order. Brevis provided it, scoring 225 runs in 6 matches at a blistering strike rate of 180.