Former superstars were dumped. Coffers opened up for men in their prime. And millions were gambled on young clots. Here are the highlights of the first day of IPL 2018 Auction at Bengaluru.
ALSO READ: Ben Stokes, KL Rahul and Manish Pandey headline major purchases
TOP GUN
England all-rounder Ben Stokes, under investigation for a nightclub brawl, was sold to Rajasthan Royals for Rs 12.5 crore. Stokes was also the most expensive player in last year’s auction at Rs 14.5 crore. However, the crown of being IPL’s highest-paid player goes to Virat Kohli, retained earlier by Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rs 17 crore. MS Dhoni (Chennai Super Kings, Rs 15 crore) and Rohit Sharma (Mumbai Indians, Rs 15 crore) were also retained for a higher fee than Stokes.
ALSO READ: Allrounders Kedar Jadhav and Chris Woakes earn strong paydays
MOST EXPENSIVE INDIAN PLAYERS (AT AUCTION)
K L Rahul (Kings XI Punjab) and Manish Pandey (Sunrisers Hyderabad) got Rs 11 crore each
SHOCKERS OF THE DAY
Highest run-getter ever in IPL and six machine Chris Gayle and highest wicket-taker ever, Lasith Malinga, remain unsold
HOTTEST YOUNG GUN
Under-19 speed prince Kamlesh Nagarkoti snapped up for Rs 3.2 crore by Kolkata Knight Riders. He started from a base price of Rs 20 lakh.
BEST BARGAIN DEAL
Kiwi blunderbuss Colin Munro, world’s no. 1 ranked T20 batter, grabbed for Rs 1.9 crore by Delhi Daredevils.
HIGHEST PRICE FOR AN UNCAPPED PLAYER
Krunal Pandya, with a base price of Rs 40 lakh, picked for Rs 8.8 crore by Mumbai Indians
OVERNIGHT MILLIONAIRE OF THE DAY
Barbados all-rounder and Big Bash hottie Jofra Archer became the centre of an unlikely bidding war before being claimed by Rajasthan Royals for a staggering Rs 7.2 crore.
MOST INCISIVE BOWLING UNITS
Toss-up between SRH and KKR. KKR top guns include Sunil Narine and Mitchell Starc. SRH has Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Rashid Khan
HEAVIEST BATTING FIREPOWER
Toss-up between DD (Colin Munro, Glenn Maxwell, Rishabh Pant) and RR (Steve Smith, Stokes, Jos Buttler)
OLD IS GOLD TEAM
Chennai Super Kings. With an assortment of aging warriors: MSD (36), Harbhajan Singh (37), Shane Watson (36), Imran Tahir (38). In comparison, Dwayne Bravo (34) and Suresh Raina (31) appear spring chickens.
Source : timesofindia
