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Expensive Spinners in IPL
The IPL 2023 mini-auction wasn’t the kindest for spinners. Teams refused to move their paddles aggressively when the spin category came up for discussion in the auction. The advent of T20 cricket was seen as the death knell for spinners. But as always they found reasons to not just survive but thrive. Let us look at details on Expensive Spinners in IPL history.
Spinners ruling the roost:
The leading wicket-takers in the shortest format are spinners. They are the ones who top the ICC charts for bowlers in T20Is. Interestingly the purple cap battle last season was fought between two spinners while the only player to win four POTM was another spinner. They can never be written off.
We look at the 5 most expensive spinners in IPL 2023:
#5 Wanindu Hasaranga – 10.75 crores
He is the only one on the list who was bought in an auction. RCB had signed Wanindu Hasaranga as a replacement for Adam Zampa in IPL 2021. They released him ahead of the mega auction in 2022 with an eye to buy him back. There was an intense bidding war for Hasaranga in the mega auction. RCB though prevailed in their quest for Hasaranga. His ability to bowl quicker through the air keeps the batsmen on their toes. He was second on the wicket-takers list in IPL 2022 thereby justifying his price tag of INR 10.75 crores.
#4 Varun Chakravarthy – 12.00 crores
He was one of the main reasons behind KKR’s revival in IPL 2021. Varun Chakravarthy has been a solid prospect for KKR ever since he started representing the franchise. His breakthrough year came in 2020 when he bamboozled opponents with his mystery spin. KKR took the bait of choosing him as the second retention ahead of the mega auction in 2022. They signed him up for INR 12.00 crores. Chakravarthy though didn’t have the best of IPLs last season. He will be keen to put up a better showing this year.
#3 Axar Patel – 12.00 crores
He has been the lynchpin of the Delhi side ever since he switched sides. Axar Patel is a vastly improved cricketer, especially in the last couple of years. His progress coincided with his stint at Delhi. Patel’s ability to bowl during any phase of the game is underrated. He is a handful even with the white ball on the subcontinental pitches. Patel can also strike the long ball at the death. Delhi had no qualms in signing him for INR 12 crores as their second retention.
#2 Rashid Khan – 15.00 crores
He was SRH’s main weapon right since he made his debut in 2017. Rashid Khan was synonymous with SRH. But a fallout over retention choice led Rashid to seek new ground. The new team Gujarat Titans plunged immediately to acquire him through the player draft. They signed him for INR 15 crores. Khan proved his worth in his very first season with the Titans as he played starring roles with both bat and the ball.
#1 Ravindra Jadeja – 16.00 crores
He is arguably the most valuable allrounder in world cricket. Ravindra Jadeja had a whirlwind IPL 2022. He was CSK’s first-choice retention. The franchisee paid the star allrounder a whopping INR 16 crores. He was also handed over the captaincy duties just at the start of the season. But a few disappointing results saw Jadeja handing over captaincy back to MS Dhoni. Jadeja skipped the majority of the latter half of the season due to injury. CSK fans will be eager to see Jadeja back to being his usual best this season.