Chennai: Rising Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell stole the thunder from his illustrious compatriots, fetching a whopping USD one million (Rs. 5.3 crore), while Abhishek Nayar and R.P. Singh also invited unexpectedly high bids in the players’ auction for the sixth edition of the IPL in Chennai on Sunday.
The 24-year-old Maxwell was bought by Mumbai Indians after fierce bidding war with new entrants Hyderabad Sunrisers in an otherwise low-key auction where 108 players went under the hammer.
“He is an upcoming youngster. He can bat, bowl and I think he is a great fielder. We had thought of some names before we came here and he was one of them,” said Mumbai owner Nita Ambani on the logic behind making such a high bid for the youngster who is just eight ODIs and nine T20s old in the international arena.
Currently playing against the West Indies in an ODI series, Maxwell was ironically out for a first-ball duck in Perth while franchises bid for him here.
Mumbai all-rounder Abhishek Nayar, who performed consistently in the domestic arena, went to Pune Warriors for $675,000 (Rs. 3.5 crore), a huge improvement on his base price of $100,000.
Sri Lankan all-rounder Thisara Perera also fetched Rs. 3.5 crore from Hyderabad Sunrisers, while Indian paceman R P Singh managed to get a good deal from Royal Challengers Bangalore, who bought him for $400,000 (Rs. 2.1 crore).
It was a surprise given that his base price was $100,000 and he has not done anything significant to merit such a high price tag.
South African all-rounder Johan Botha was bought by Delhi Daredevils for $450,000 (Rs. 2.3 crore).
Australian captain Michael Clarke and his predecessor Ricky Ponting, both of whom were marquee players, did not generate much interest among the franchises. The two were sold on their base price of $400,000 (Rs. 2.1 crore).
Maxwell made his debut for Australia against Afghanistan in a One Day International in the United Arab Emirates in 2012.
Among others who would be smiling all the way to bank are Maxwell’s compatriot Luke Pomersbach. The troubled player, who has battled alcoholism, fetched a deal of $300,000 (Rs. 1.5 crore) with Kings XI Punjab. The 28-year-old batsman started with a base price of $50,000.
West Indies captain Darren Sammy was purchased by Hyderabad Sunrisers for $425,000 (Rs. 2.2 crore), while Australian James Faulkner also had a good day at the auction with Rajasthan Royals shelling out $400,000 (Rs. 2.1 crore) for him.
The all-rounders drew interest from the franchises with most of them getting decent packages but it turned out to be quite a dampener for all the wicketkeepers in the list as they went unsold.
South Africans Vernan Philander and Herschelle Gibbs, West Indian Darren Bravo, England’s Ravi Bopara, Australians James Hopes, Matthew Wade and Tim Paine were the prominent names who did not invite a single bid.
The contracts offered at this year’s auction are for just this season as all the players will go under the hammer next year.
Among those who got good deals were Australia’s Moises Henriques (sold for $300,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore), temperamental New Zealand batsman Jesse Ryder ($260,000 to Delhi Daredevils).
India’s uncapped domestic stars Jaydev Unadkat and Pankaj Singh were also among the big gainers at the auction. Jaydev was bought for $525,000 (Rs. 2.7 crore) by Bangalore, much higher than his base price of $100,000.
Pankaj, on the other hand, was bought for $150,000 by the same franchise, a massive jump from his base price of $50,000.
Another Indian pacer Manpreet Gony went for $500,000 (Rs. 2.6 crore) to Kings XI Punjab.