5 Most Iconic IPL Auction Signings: It is auction time in the IPL. There is a lot of buzz surrounding the mini auctions this season. It is in the mini auctions that result in players fetching a high price. Players like Chris Morris fetched the highest bid in a similar mini-auction. It is often the auction table that ends up determining the fate of a franchise. There have been several signings in the auctions that are spoken about even now.
We look at 5 Most Iconic IPL Auction Signings:
#5 Kieron Pollard – 2010
He showcased his potential in the erstwhile 2009 Champions League T20. Mumbai Indians had their eyes on the young man from Trinidad & Tobago. There was a bidding war for Kieron Pollard. Multiple franchises raised their bids for the burly all-rounder. But it was Mumbai who prevailed through the intense auction.
Pollard played for just a single franchise in IPL history. He retired before the moment he realized MI couldn’t retain him for the next season.
#4 Yuvraj Singh – 2015
There is no doubt that Yuvraj Singh could never really bring his A-game to the fore in IPL. But until 2015 there was no dearth of offers for Yuvraj. He represented the Punjab franchise as an icon player in the first 3 years. Singh played for Pune from 2011-13. In the mega auctions of 2014, RCB punted heavily on Yuvraj buying him for INR 14 crores. It was the highest price ever at that point.
A middling season saw RCB release Yuvraj the same year. Little did anyone know that his fortunes will be on the upswing even in the next season. Delhi franchise paid a whopping INR 16 crores in 2015 auctions to acquire his services.
#3 Ben Stokes – 2017
He was already one of the world’s leading allrounders during the 2016-17 season. Ben Stokes came into the IPL knowing fully well that he will ignite fireworks. A dampened Rising Pune Supergiant franchise was looking for inspiration. They placed all their bets on Ben Stokes in the 2017 auction. He was seen as the cog around which they wanted their team to spin. They pocketed Stokes for a massive sum of INR 14.5 crores.
#2 KL Rahul – 2018
In what can be dubbed as one of the most disastrous moves of all time, RCB released KL Rahul ahead of IPL 2018 mega auction. There was little doubt that Rahul will break the bank in the auctions. It was a two-way bidding race between Hyderabad and Punjab as they kept pushing each other.
The bid reached a fever pitch when the price entered double figures. It was Punjab who eventually won the bid at INR 11 crores for Rahul. His demand in the auction was enough to suggest that RCB had got it wrong.
#1 MS Dhoni – 2008
There could be numerous signings that could end up breaking the glass ceiling in the IPL Auctions. But there can’t be any signing that can come close to the iconic moment of MS Dhoni going under the hammer. MS Dhoni was the hottest property in world cricket at the time of the Inaugural IPL auctions.
It was a watershed moment when all the teams raised their paddle to bid for Dhoni. In what seemed a never-ending tussle finally had a winner. The Chennai Super Kings brought MS Dhoni for a humungous sum of INR 6 crores. Indian cricket and world cricket at large were never the same again!
