Ishan Kishan, Deepak Chahar strike gold at IPL auction

Bengaluru: Expected to be bought at premium prices, the Indian players became million dollar buys. Leading the pack was the flamboyant Ishan Kishan, who was retained by Mumbai Indians at a whopping Rs 15.25 crore on Day 1 of the 2022 IPL auction.

Kishan became the second Indian player in the IPL history to have earned huge money after Yuvraj Singh, who was purchased by Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rs 16 crore during the 2014 auction.

"I am really excited to be back at MI. I know everyone has treated me there like a family so I am really happy to be there and I hope to give my best to the team. Thank you so much," Kishan said.

His Indian teammates Deepak Chahar and Shreyas Iyer also were snapped up at staggering price as they were bought for Rs 14 crore and Rs 12.25 crore by Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders, respectively.

Mumbai Indians locked horns with Sunrisers Hyderabad, bidding for Kishan who was released by the franchise last year.

Amidst tensions running high among the franchises to get the right balance in their teams, they saw veteran auctioneer Hugh Edmeades collapsing flat on his face midway into the proceedings, which led to an early lunch at the event.

This unfortunate incident forced the event holders to replace Edmeades with renowned sports commentator Charu Sharma to resume the bidding. Like previous years, none of the franchises were bowled over by performances in Big Bash League, the Caribbean Premier League and the Pakistan Super League and focused only on players who could add value during the IPL.

The uncapped players carried a premium on their heads as Avesh Khan, leading the pack by earning all-time highest money of Rs 10 crore, piping Shahrukh Khan and Rahul Tewatia, who raked in Rs 9 crore each by Punjab Kings and Gujarat Titans.

Previously, Krishappa Gowtham was the richest uncapped player who was bought by CSK in 2021 for Rs 9.25 crore. Southpaw Devdutt Padikkal was acquired by Rajasthan Royals for Rs 7.75 crore.

While some of the foreign players made big bucks, Pat Cummins and David Warner took a pay cut, with Australian pacer earning Rs 7.25 crore and his compatriot settling for Rs 6.25 crore. Both were picked up by KKR and DC, respectively. Cummins was bought for over Rs 15 crore in a previous auction.

Nevertheless, DC co-owner Parth Jindal and KKR CEO Venky Mysore were delighted to have Warner and Cummins on their sides, respectively.

"To get back Pat Cummins at that price (Rs 7.25 crore), we are very, very delighted. We thought he would go higher. We could not be happier getting Cummins and Shreyas in the first round itself," Mysore said. "As far as captaincy is concerned, that's a decision our coach and the think-tank will take. Certainly, between Cummins and Shreyas, we have solid options for us. I'm sure the think-tank will make the right decisions."

On Warner's buy, Jindal said, "I cannot believe that we got such a legend at Rs 6.25 crore. With Warner and Prithvi Shaw opening the batting, it will be an explosive start to every single Delhi Capitals innings. We are really excited to have Shardul as he can bowl in Power Plays and bowl at the death."

Among the overseas cricketers who became million dollar buys was Wanindu Hasaranga who went for Rs 10.75 crore, considering his magnificent bowling performance at the ICC T20 World Cup.

Other foreign players Jason Holder, Kagiso Rabada and Shimron Hetmyer also earned handsome monies as they were bought for Rs 8.75 crore, Rs 9.25 crore and Rs 8.5 crore by Lucknow Super Giants, Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals, respectively.

This indicated that the franchises focused on those overseas players who have shown themselves to be consistent performers in previous IPLs and with a reputation of doing well on Indian tracks.

To add firepower, the franchises focused on retaining their core base. Chennai Super Kings succeeded in retaining Dwayne Bravo (Rs 4.40 crore), Ambati Rayudu (Rs 6.75 crore) and Robin Uthappa (Rs 2 crore). Royal Challengers Bangalore retained Indian pacer Harshal Patel for Rs 10.75 crore, who was leading wicket-taker in last year's IPL.

Old war-horses Shikhar Dhawan and Mohammed Shami raked in a good moolah of Rs 8.25 crore and Rs 6.25 crore, who were bought by Punjab Kings and new entrants Gujarat Titans, respectively. Ravichandran Ashwin also did well as Rajasthan Royals splurged Rs 5 crore on him.

Some others were lucky to have been drafted in despite their poor form. For instance, Manish Pandey managed a good bargain for Rs 4.6 crore. The Lucknow franchise also spent Rs 8.25 crore and Rs 5.75 crore on Krunal Pandya and Deepak Hooda, respectively.

In the wicketkeepers category, West Indian Nicholas Pooran earned more than Johnny Bairstow, raking in a staggering Rs 10.75 crore after Sunrisers Hyderabad bought him up. Bairstow was purchased by Punjab Kings for Rs 6.75 crore. Punjab got Mayank Agarwal's opening partner for the season. While RCB bought Faf du Plessis for Rs 7 crore, paving the way for resolving opening and captaincy issues, Lucknow scalped Quinton de Kock for Rs 6.75 crore.

The event will resume past noon with an accelerated bidding process on February 13. (UNI)