IPL 2019: IPL starting XI cheaper than million dollar baby Varun Chakravarthy

Varun Chakravarthy bagged a million-dollar deal with Kings XI Punjab in the IPL 2019 auction

A total of 350 cricketers went under the hammer at the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) 2019 auction at Jaipur. A total of 60 players were sold, including 20 overseas players and 40 Indians.

Jaydev Unadkat and the uncapped Varun Chakravarthy were the two most expensive buys of the season. They were bought by Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab for Rs 8.40 crores each.

The little known Varun Chakravarthy came to limelight during the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL). He is capable of bowling seven variations with his off-spinners and carrom-balls. Despite his success in TNPL, Varun is still a raw product with not much of international exposure. A sum of Rs 8.4 crore for an uncapped player is a big gamble Kings XI Punjab has taken.

Here is the imaginary IPL XI comprising seven Indians and four foreigners who could have been bought at the IPL auction with Varun's price of Rs 8.4 crore.

#1 Martin Guptill - Opening batsman

Bought by SRH for Rs. 1.00 Cr

Guptill was bought by SRH for one crore INR

Martin Guptill is one of the stalwarts of the New Zealand cricket team in the shorter format of the game. He is the only New Zealand player to score a double century in ODIs.

The New Zealand opening batsman has played 213 T20 games scoring 4810 runs at an impressive average of 32.60. He also has a healthy strike-rate of 128.2. He is playing T20 since 2006 and has four hundreds against his name.

SRH made a smart move by purchasing Guptill who can act as a cover for SRH during Warner's absence in the later part of the tournament. Guptill has played only 10 IPL games so far and would like to showcase his potential in the IPL too.