This year’s IPL again topped itself with total purchases amounting to a cool $20 million (approx). We list the 5 biggest buys and some other notable stories from this year’s auction which took place on Feb 18 in Chennai.
The Trendsetters: Chris Morris
Having a base price of Rs 75 lac, he took the lion’s share when Rajasthan Royals took him on at a record breaking Rs 16.25 crore ($ 2.2 million approx). The 6’4 allrounder from South Africa is renowned as a top bowler in the death overs of the game
Kyle Jamieson
Also with a base price of Rs 75 lac, the towering 6’8 New Zealander was sold to Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rs 15 crore, making him the highest paid Kiwi cricketer. The bowler made his mark when he fetched 6 wickets for 7 in the Super Smash game in 2019. The figures are the best recorded for a New Zealander and the 5th best overall in T20 cricket.
Glenn Maxwell
He fetched Rs 14.25 crore, leagues above his base price of Rs 2 crore. The Aussie allrounder was snatched up by Royal Challengers Bangalore, where he looks forward to playing with Virat Kohli.
Jhye Richardson
The Australian bowler expressed his surprise and disbelief when he was purchased for Rs 14 crore by the rebranded Punjab Kings. His base price was Rs 1.50 crore. His career highlights include the stellar figures of 8/47 in 2018 against New South Wales, and taking Virat Kohli’s wicket 3 times in ODIs. He recalled being dismissed by coaches in terms of fast bowling prowess due to his relatively average height and weight of 5’10 and 70 kg.
Krishnappa Gowtham
The Bangalore-born allrounder was sold to Chennai Super Kings for Rs 9.25 crore, far above his base price of Rs 20 lac. This makes him the costliest uncapped Indian player of all time. He has history with the IPL, having played for Mumbai Indians in 2017 and Rajasthan Royals in 2018. He is currently part of the Indian team playing a Test series against England.
Notable Buys and Surprises
Varun Aaron, Marnus Labuschagne, Martin Guptill, Corey Anderson, Shaun Marsh and Aaron Finch (current third-best batsman in T20I rankings) among others went unsold.
Arjun Tendulkar, son of icon Sachin Tendulkar, was snapped up by Mumbai Indians for Rs 20 lac which matched his base price. He will be making his IPL debut at age 21.
Tamil Nadu batsman Shahrukh Khan (named after the original SRK) turned millionaire on Thursday when Punjab Kings bought him for Rs 5.25 crore, above his base price of Rs 20 lakh.
Potential Breakout Star
The new personality with humble beginnings is Chetan Sakariya of Bhavnagar, Gujarat. He has received a Rs 1.20 crore contract from Rajasthan Royals.
The youngster will be returning from the tragedy of his younger brother’s suicide. The small house, helmed by his father who is a tempo driver, he grew up in didn’t have a TV, so he was left to watch cricket either at his friends’ places or outside of TV stores. He had played for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the previous IPL edition hosted in the UAE. He has played 15 first-class and 16 T20 games. The fast bowler has a superb economy rate of 4.9 per over.
With enough excitement drummed up for the new IPL edition, it remains to be seen which one of these buys pays off and which falls short.