IPL 2021: 5 Biggest gainers in the auction

Indian Premier League auction for the season 2021 was held in Chennai where a total of 57 players were bought by 8 franchises. There were only 61 spots available in teams for this mini-auction. Of the 57 players who were sold, 22 are overseas players while remaining 35 are Indians.

Overall, 29 out of 57 players bought in this auction have been uncapped players. Majority of the uncapped players were Indian domestic players. Some of the experienced players like Piyush Chawla and Harbhajan Singh too were able to find franchise this season.

For some players in this mini-auction, teams went too far to get them which caused a bidding war. Among these were some cricketers who got way more money in comparison to their base price. This generally happens because of particular demand by different teams. 

IPL 2021: 5 Biggest gainers in the auction

5. Riley Meredith – 20 times

Australian player Riley Meredith had set his base price at 40 lac but was bought by Punjab Kings at 8 cr INR i.e 20 times his base price. Apart from Punjab, the Delhi Capitals team also bid for him in the auction.

He also became the highest-paid overseas uncapped player in an IPL auction. The young Aussie pacer had impressed everyone with his pace in Big Bash League.

Punjab had earlier bought Jhye Richardson in the auction but went for Meredith as well to strengthen their pace attack which already had Indian fast bowler Mohammad Shami in the ranks. 

4. Kyle Jamieson – 20 times

Kiwi pacer Kyle Jamieson who has been taking 5-fers for fun in Test cricket was the talk of the town even before the IPL Auction. The build-up really helped Jamieson as three teams namely Royal Challengers Bangalore, Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals went in a bidding war to snatch the pacer. 

He was eventually bought by RCB for a huge price of 15 cr, which is 20 times his base price of 75 lacs. The Kiwi player is yet to play in subcontinent condition in International cricket.

Though Jamieson has been brilliant in Test format, he is yet to prove his worth in T20I format. It will be interesting to see how he performs in the upcoming IPL after getting such a high price.

3. Chris Morris – 21.66 times

Chris Morris had a very good IPL last season with the Royal Challengers Bangalore but was surprisingly released by the franchise before the auction. However, the release actually helped Morris in monetary terms as he got way more money than his last year’s price.

Morris had set his base price at 75 lac and was bought at a price 21.66 times more than it i.e. 16.25 cr INR by Rajasthan Royals. RCB too bid for him but only till 10 cr, his last year auction price.       

Mumbai Indians and Punjab Kings were the other two franchises who put their paddles to get the proteas all-rounder. 

2. Shahrukh Khan – 26.25 times

Indian All-rounder Shahrukh Khan was among the few uncapped players who were expected to get good bids from the teams in the mini-auction. Since there was no Under-19 World Cup before the auction, there was a dearth of quality young players.

Shahrukh Khan was bought by Punjab Kings for 5.25 cr, which is 26.25 times his base price of 20 lacs. He can be very handy in the middle order and has the ability to hit big shots as well.

Apart from Punjab, the Delhi Capitals teams and Royal Challengers also bid for the youngster. It is to be noted that Shahrukh Khan went unsold in the IPL auction last year.

1. K Gowtham – 46.25 times

Krishnappa Gowtham became the most expensive uncapped player in the IPL auction history as he was bought by Chennai Super Kings for 9.25 cr. He had set his base price at 20 lacs and got 46.25 times money ultimately. 

Gowtham played for Punjab franchise last year but got an opportunity to feature in only 2 games. He had proven his worth as an able all-rounder in previous seasons of IPL with Rajasthan Royals.      

Good hitting ability with the bat and quality off-spin makes him a great choice in the eleven. Gowtham has an impressive strike-rate of 169.1 in the 24 matches he has played in the league.