Ben Stokes, Eoin Morgan set highest base price for IPL auctions

The 2017 edition of the IPL is a couple of months away. The build up to the auctions has already started and all eyes are set on the English players. As per the recent reports in ESPNcricinfo, English skipper Eoin Morgan, all-rounder Ben Stokes and bowler Chris Woakes have set the highest base price for the auctions. They will enter the auction pool with a base price of INR 2 crores each.

Other players to have listed their base price as INR 2 crore are Indian pacer Ishant Sharma, former Aussie quick Mitchell Johnson, Sri Lankan skipper Angelo Mathews and Aussie speedster Pat Cummins. As many as 799 players have been listed in the auction roster. The list is bound to be pruned after the franchises give the names of the players they are interested in.

Close to 160 capped players from the major teams, except Pakistan and Bangladesh, will enter into the auctions. Out of those, 639 players are from India, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and West Indies. Only 24 Indian capped players are in the list.

All of them have listed their base price as INR 30 Lakh, except Ishant Sharma, who opted to list himself at 2 crore. The next highest bracket of base price, INR 1.5 crore, sees the likes of English wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow, New Zealand pacer Trent Boult, Australian spinner Nathan Lyon, former Aussie wicketkeeper Brad Haddin, West Indies all-rounder Jason Holder and South African bowler Kyle Abbott, who recently signed a a kolpak deal.

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It is worth noting that Abbott was previously associated with Kings XI Punjab and Boult had his association with Sunrisers Hyderabad last season. Jason Holder has played for Kolkata Knight Riders. Another man who will have all eyes glued to him will be Indian all-rounder Pawan Negi. Negi was the second most expensive player at the last auction. He was bought for 8.5 crore INR by Delhi Daredevils. However, his string of low scores saw him released from the franchise in early January this year. Now, Negi is listed at INR 30 Lakh.

Needless to say, that the English players have been hogging the limelight ahead of the auctions. Franchises have openly showed interest in buying them. Apart from Stokes, Morgan, and Woakes, the other notable English names in the auction pool are – Openers Alex Hales and Jason Roy (at INR 1 crore each), pacers Tymal Mills and Chris Jordan (INR 50 lakh each).