IPL 2021 Auction: 292 players to go under the hammer
A total of 292 players will go under the hammer in the IPL 2021 player auctions, set to be held on February 18 in Chennai. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) confirmed the development through a release on Thursday. The list has been trimmed from the initial number after the eight franchises submitted their respective shortlists. Here is more.
The list comprises 164 Indian players
A total of 164 Indian players, 125 overseas players and three players from Associate nations will be available in the auction. Notably, the figure was specified as 1,097 earlier. As many as 17 new players were later added on request from the franchises.
A look at the players with highest base price
Two Indian players, Harbhajan Singh and Kedhar Jadhav, have chosen the highest slab of Rs. 2 crore as their base price. The duo has been released by the Chennai Super Kings. They are accompanied by Glenn Maxwell and Steve Smith (Australia), Shakib Al Hasan (Bangladesh), Moeen Ali, Sam Billings, Liam Plunkett, Jason Roy and Mark Wood (England) in the same bracket.
The players in Rs. 1.5 and 1 crore bracket
Twelve players have opted for the Rs. 1.5 crore bracket, the second-highest available. The list includes Alex Hales, Alex Carey, Dawid Malan, Morne Morkel, Gregory Lewis, David Willey, Tom Curran, Shaun Marsh, Adil Rashid, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Jhye Richardson and Nathan Coulter-Nile. Meanwhile, both Hanuma Vihari and Umesh Yadav are among the 11 cricketers with a base price of Rs. 1 crore.
Afghanistan's Noor Ahmad the youngest player in auction pool
At 16, uncapped Afghanistan leg-spinner Noor Ahmad is the youngest player in the auction pool. Paradoxically, spinner Nayan Doshi, son of former Indian spinner Dilip Doshi, is the oldest player to feature. Among the new names, Sadiq Kirmani, son of former India wicket-keeper Syed Kirmani, makes an entry. The 31-year-old is also a wicket-keeper-batsman, having played two List A matches for Karnataka.
Marsh, Anderson and Morkel the new additions
Australia batsman Shaun Marsh, New Zealand all-rounder Corey Anderson and former SA fast bowler Morne Morkel are part of the 17 new names to feature among the 292 players. Marsh, who once made headlines playing for KXIP, has listed his base price at Rs. 1.5 crore. Morkel has listed the same base price. Meanwhile, Anderson has listed his base price at Rs. 75 lakhs.
Sreesanth snubbed, Arjun Tendulkar makes the shortlist
Former India fast bowler Sreesanth, who played the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy for Kerala after serving a ban for spot fixing, is not part of the final list. Notably, he had set his base price at Rs. 75 lakhs. Meanwhile, Arjun Tendulkar, the son of Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar, makes the shortlist. Here is the complete list of players.
