Most Expensive IPL Player
The payday for IPL 2023 arrived finally. It was non-stop action until the lunch break. Teams who were keen to buy certain players really went all out. There was no dropping the paddle when the big names arrived. A few lesser-known quantities did surprise with the sum they were brought for. Let us look at the Most Expensive IPL Player in IPL 2023 Mini Auction.
Players who offered multiple skills though were the toast of the auction. England’s success in T20 World Cup 2022 reaffirmed the importance of allrounders in a team.
We look at the Most Expensive IPL Player in the auctions:
#3 Ben Stokes
There was little doubt that Ben Stokes would fetch a double-digit number in the auctions. Stokes is someone who has always fetched a huge number in all the auctions he has been a part of. He was the highest-paid player in both the 2017 and 2018 auctions. Stokes was coming into the auctions high on confidence.
He was the player of the match in the finals of the 2022 T20 World Cup. Stokes is now the captain of the England Test team. He has led their revival of sorts in a very short span of time. All these factors were the riders that hyped his presence in the auctions this time around. Hence it was a little surprise that there were multiple teams who vied for Stokes. But it was the Chennai Super Kings who triumphed in the end and shelled out INR 16.25 crores to outbid others.
#2 Cameroon Green
He is yet to play a single IPL game. But that didn’t deter teams from going all guns blazing for him. He was one of the few players who raced past the INR 10 crore mark in no time. Green’s biggest hit came in the bilateral T20I series against India ahead of the T20 World Cup. He opened the innings smashing bowlers of all kinds. Green looked at ease playing the spinners as well.
IPL franchises duly took note of his exploits. He is someone who could bowl the hard ball. It is this length that has been most difficult to hit in the middle overs of a T20I. Green was too lucrative an all-round package to be missed out on. Mumbai true to its reputation of acquiring potential superstars bought Green for a massive INR 17.50 crores!
#1 Sam Curran
He was the player of the tournament in the 2022 T20 World Cup. Sam Curran put on quite a show in the mega event. It was his death bowling skills that stood out especially. Sam Curran is a proven IPL performer who has been a big part of both the IPL teams he was previously part of. He is someone who could strike it big no matter what position he came into bat.
Curran’s temperament though is his biggest asset. He is someone who always likes to be in the contest. Curran loves pressure situations. It is these combinations of factors that made Curran a hot pick in the auctions. Teams like CSK and MI did try their best to get him onboard. But it was PBKS who eventually prevailed as they made Curran the most expensive player ever in the IPL (INR 18.5 crores).
