Indian wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant has become the most expensive player in Indian Premier League history, signed by the Lucknow Super Giants for 27 crore (AU$4.92 million).
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The 27-year-old, currently playing the first Test against Australia in Perth, will join the Super Giants for the 2025 edition of the glamorous T20 tournament, having represented the Delhi Capitals since 2019.
Pant surpassed the previous record of 26.75 crore, set a few minutes earlier by Indian teammate Shreyas Iyer.
Following a tense bidding war with the Capitals, Ricky Ponting’s Punjab Kings secured the services of Iyer for $4.87 million. The 29-year-old led the Knight Riders towards an IPL title last summer, smacking 370 runs at 46.25 with a strike rate of 158.79.
Meanwhile, Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc was signed by the Delhi Capitals for $2.14 million, sold for less than half of what he received last year.
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PREVIEW
Some of the world’s top cricketers will be among 574 players seeking an Indian Premier League payday when the lucrative T20 tournament begins its annual auction on Sunday.
There will be 37 Australians up for grabs during the two-day bidding frenzy, which is set to take place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
All up there are 208 players who qualify as overseas imports at this year’s auctions, with the other 366 being local players.
Of the 208 overseas players, there are three who make the cut from associate nations: Ali Khan (USA), Unmukt Chand (USA) and Brandon McMullen (Scotland).
The auction begins on Sunday night at 9pm AEDT and will continue on Monday at the same time, with the bidding on both nights broadcast on Fox Sports and available to be streamed on Kayo Sports.
If you want a full explainer on how the auction works, you can read our ultimate guide ahead of the event.
As for the Australians who could be snapped up, only two — Pat Cummins and Travis Head — were already retained by their respective franchises and, as a result, are not up for sale.
In terms of the Australians with the highest base prices, which is an indicator of who is likely to go for the most money, the bidding will start at $364,000 AUD for 10 of them.
One of those players is Mitchell Starc, who smashed the IPL auction record last year when Kolkata Knight Riders netted his services for $2.98 million (24.75 crore).
The left-arm quick and handy lower-order slugger was instrumental in their run to the title, including taking 2-14 in the final against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Kolkata nevertheless opted not to retain him.
“It is what it is, that’s franchise cricket,” Starc said.
Starc’s cheeky CHIRP at IPL teammate | 00:12
Elsewhere, South African David Miller is tipped to spark a bidding war after registering for the auction at a base price of $273,000 AUD.
Known as ‘Killer Miller’ for his destructive batting, the South African has a T20 international strike rate of close to 140.
The 35-year-old is also looking for a new home after playing with Gujarat Titans since the team’s inception in 2022, smashing 210 runs in nine matches in this year’s season.
India’s dismissal of Miller in this year’s T20 World Cup final in Barbados was a key moment in the match and the Proteas went on to lose.
Another one to watch is Rishabh Pant, who was forced out of competitive cricket for more than a year after a serious car crash in December 2022 but returned to captain the Delhi Capitals this year.
India’s top wicketkeeper-batsman and the franchise parted ways after their disappointing sixth-placed finish and will enter the auction at a $364,000 AUD base price.
With his sharp glovework and knack of taking on bowlers with attacking and unconventional batting, pundits believe he is in the running to secure a record payday.
“Mitchell Starc’s auction record is in danger,” former India quick Irfan Pathan said on social media.
AUSTRALIANS UP FOR GRABS AT IPL AUCTION
NEW SOUTH WALES
Sean Abbott* — $364,000 AUD
Ollie Davies — $54,600 AUD
Ben Dwarshuis — $136,500 AUD
Josh Hazlewood* — $364,000 AUD
Chris Green — $182,000 AUD
Josh Philippe — $136,500 AUD
Tanveer Sangha — $136,500 AUD
Steve Smith* — $364,000 AUD
Mitchell Starc* — $364,000 AUD
Adam Zampa* — $364,000 AUD
QUEENSLAND
Xavier Bartlett* — $136,500 AUD
Ben McDermott — $136,500 AUD
Michael Neser — $136,500 AUD
SOUTH AUSTRALIA
Alex Carey* — $182,000 AUD
Jake Fraser-McGurk — $364,000 AUD
Spencer Johnson — $364,000 AUD
TASMANIA
Nathan Ellis* — $227,500 AUD
Riley Meredith — $273,000 AUD
VICTORIA
Josh Brown — $54,600 AUD
Glenn Maxwell* — $364,000 AUD
Matthew Short — $136,500 AUD
Will Sutherland — $136,500 AUD
WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Ashton Agar — $227,500 AUD
Hilton Cartwright — $136,500 AUD
Cooper Connolly — $136,500 AUD
Aaron Hardie* — $227,500 AUD
Josh Inglis* — $364,000 AUD
Mitchell Marsh* — $364,000 AUD
Lance Morris* — $227,500 AUD
Jhye Richardson* — $273,000 AUD
Ashton Turner — $182,000 AUD
UNCONTRACTED
Jason Behrendorff — $273,000 AUD
Tim David — $364,000 AUD
Daniel Sams — $273,000 AUD
Marcus Stoinis — $364,000 AUD
Andrew Tye — $136,500 AUD
David Warner — $364,000 AUD
*Denotes a player contracted with Cricket Australia
CONVERSION RATE: 1 crore (10,000,000 Indian rupee) = $182,000 AUD
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