Interest in the IPL `mega auction over the weekend runs sky high. There are 624 (Additional 44 players via accelerated auctions) players in the fray seeking attention from franchise owners. About 65-70 per cent of these are unlikely to find a buyer, yet that does not diminish the excitement and anticipation a whit – among players, owners and fans.
Two new teams have been added to the league this year, the purse for player purchases has been raised to Rs 90 crore for each franchise which will add enormously to the `action over this weekend. The sound of the gavel for each sale will be heavy. The highest earner so far — from retentions made by the eight existing franchises and pre-auction acquisitions by two new ones — is KL Rahul. He was fetched by Lucknow Super Giants, (he will also captain the team) for a whopping Rs 17 crore. This is also the most paid to any player in the history of the IPL.
Will Rahul’s figure be exceeded over the weekend? The previous highest in an auction was Rs 16 crore by Rajasthan Royals for South African Chris Morris a season ago. In a mega auction, with team owners, coaches and captains looking to revamp for the medium to long term, it is entirely possible. There is a plethora of high-quality players who will command fancy prices as team managements look for matchwinners, and to give the side balance and heft apart from those already ticked in.
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The likes of David Warner, Kagiso Rabada, Ravi Ashwin, Mohamed Shami, Shikhar Dhawan, Ishan Kishan, Pat Cummins, Faf du Plessis, Shreyas Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal. Sakib-ul-Hasan – and this list is only indicative — are expected to be frontrunners in finding ready favour. The bidding on most such players is likely to be intense, which could send their price sky-rocketing.
Apart from the experienced quality performers, one can expect punts too on relatively lesser known stars – albeit with impressive T20 credentials) and young players perceived to have fine potential. In this cluster would be the likes of Liam Livingstone, Jason Roy, Tim David, Deepak Chahar, Shah Rukh Khan and Avesh Khan among others.
The last two mentioned are uncapped Indian players, but have fantastic performances to their credit in domestic tournaments, including the IPL. Avesh Khan, in fact was the second highest wicket-taker with 24 victims and will be on every team’s radar. Add to these lists also quite a few members of the India under-19 World Cup winning team, and the auction will be demanding on strategists in all franchises.
Hype and hoopla around the mega auction will not translate into money being burnt. While the overall purse for each team is Rs 90 crore, most teams have already spent around 50 per cent of this in retention or acquisition. As it stands, Punjab Kings have the most in the kitty – Rs 75 crore – as they retained the fewest players, and Delhi Capitals have the least – 47.5 after retaining their four, the maximum allowed.
All other teams are ranged between these two figures. Since squads must have a minimum of 18 players and can have a maximum of 25, the remaining money must be spent wisely. Bidding wars in the past have seen teams exhausting a major chunk of their money, and then not having enough money remaining to boost the talent quotient in the squad.
Team managements have smartened up since the IPL began in 2008, the thinking is more adroit. Just big names is not the big incentive. Players who lend balance, depth and heft to the team will be pursued. These will differ from team to team, and that is where the bidding process also becomes challenging.
Making a bid is as much about financial control as identifying players who fit into slots which in turn fits into the overall game-plan. In this exercise is also included making dummy bids to throw other team managements off the scent as it were, or keep money in hand to make some vital purchases towards the end of the auction, when others may have run out of moolah.
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The mega auction is spread over two days, and players will come up in clusters of 10 each based on their expertise (batting, bowling, all-rounder, wicket-keeper), for the initial 161 players, including the marquee set of cricketers. This will be followed by `accelerated bidding. There is also a `tie-breaker clause in which teams competing for the same player who have run out of money can make a secret bid. The higher bidder gets the player, but the extra money accrues
When the first IPL auction was held in 2008, there was huge interest, but also great deal of skepticism and criticism. Some likened it to smearing the gentleman’s game because of the naked display of commerce. Nevertheless, the auction had the cricket world in thrall. This has only grown in the years since, and this year’s mega auction promises to be a headline grabber and circuit breaker with several players laughing all the way to the bank.
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