The Indian Premier League (IPL) is now set to be held in the UAE amid COVID-19 pandemic scare in India.
The Indian Premier League (IPL) Governing Council is set to meet and finalize the schedule and other key topics for the tournament on Sunday (August 2). The tournament is now set to be held in the UAE amid COVID-19 pandemic scare in India.
"We are having the governing council meeting on 2nd of August and major issues related to the league will be discussed in this meeting," a BCCI source was quoted as saying by ANI earlier this week.
Following the postponement of the T20 World Cup by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on Monday, IPL is now set to be held during the window of September 19 to November 10.
While franchises eagerly await for today's Governing Council meeting outcome, let's rewind to the mini-auction that took place in December last year (2019).
A total of 62 players were bought by eight teams combined. From uncapped youngsters going for big money to prominent names being snapped up at base prices, the average
Indian cricket fan saw it all.
The auction, which had taken place at ITC Royal Bengal Hotel in Kolkata saw New Zealand all-rounder James Neesham go for Rs. 50 lakh (base price) to Kings XI Punjab, while players like Tim Southee, Adam Zampa and Liam Plunkett failed to get any takers.
So here's a list of top 5 expensive players in the 2020 auction.
1. Pat Cummins: Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) - 15.50 crore
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Pat Cummins - Sold for Rs 15.50 crore to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)
The Australia pacer took the auction by storm when he became the most expensive foreign signing in the history of the T20 league. He even surpassed England all-rounder Ben Stokes' bid of Rs 14.5 crores made at the IPL 2017 auctions by the now-defunct Rising Pune Supergiant.
Cummins is also the second most expensive player in the history of the IPL auction, with the first being Yuvraj Singh, who was signed by the then Delhi Daredevils (DD) for Rs 16 crore in 2015.
The last time Cummins featured in the IPL was in 2017 where he had claimed 15 wickets for the Daredevils. However, an injury ruled him out of action for Mumbai Indians in the 2018 season and he was released before the following year’s auction.
2. Glenn Maxwell: Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) - 10.75 crore
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Glenn Maxwell - Sold for Rs 10.75 crore to Kings XI Punjab (KXIP)
Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell was picked by KXIP for a whopping Rs 10.75 crore. He has returned to KXIP after having played for them from 2014 to 2017.
Maxwell had earlier taken a break from international cricket owing to mental health issues. He was also one of the biggest buys in the 2013 auctions. He began with a base price of $200,000 and was finally bought by Mumbai Indians (MI) for a whopping $1 million.
3. Chris Morris: Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) - 10 crore
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Chris Morris - Sold for Rs 10 crore to Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB)
South African all-rounder Chris Morris has joined RCB for Rs 10 crore. However, his buy was questioned as former New Zealand cricketer Simon Doull tweeted saying RCB used up 'stupid money' to get Morris.
RCB beat Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) and Mumbai Indians (MI) to acquire Morris.
Prior to the auction, Morris had an unimpressive outing in the Mzansi Super League (MSL). He managed to pick only 10 wickets at an economy of 8.20 and scored 122 runs at a strike-rate of 176.
4. Sheldon Cottrell: Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) - 8.50 crore
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Sheldon Cottrell - Sold for Rs 8.50 crore to Kings XI Punjab (KXIP)
Kings XI Punjab spent Rs 8.50 crore for West Indian pacer Sheldon Cottrell. The Windies star was a trending name before the auction.
The pacer was expected to trigger a bidding war, and it did, between Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) before Delhi Capitals (DC) made it a three-way race. However, KXIP had the final laugh.
5. Nathan Coulter-Nile: Mumbai Indians (MI) - 8 crore
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Nathan Coulter-Nile - Sold for Rs 8 crore to Mumbai Indians (MI)
Maxwell's compatriot Nathan Coulter-Nile also enjoyed a million-dollar payday when Ambani's Mumbai Indians (MI) shelled out Rs 8 crore for the pacer.
The Australian had set himself at a base price of Rs 1 crore and returned to MI after six years.
