IPL Auction 2020: Assembled XI cheaper than Pat Cummins
The IPL Auction held on the 19th of December in Kolkata turned out to be an exciting affair as it had plenty of surprises in store for the fans.
The likes of Pat Cummins, Glenn Maxwell, Chris Morris, Sheldon Cottrell, Nathan Coulter-Nile and Shimron Hetmyer ended up receiving bids that were worth more than $1 million. CSK paid ₹6.75 crores for Piyush Chawla's services and made him the most expensive Indian at this season's auction.
There were also several bargains on offer as players like Chris Lynn, James Neesham and Tom Banton were bought for their base prices. The upcoming season could turn out to be a carbon copy of the last season as Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings, Dehi Capitals and Sunrisers Hyderabad look like the strongest teams on paper. The likes of Royal Challengers Bangalore, Rajasthan Royals and Kolkata Knight Riders have a couple of holes in their squads, while Kings XI Punjab have strengthened a fair bit.
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The ₹15.5 crore bid that KKR made for Pat Cummins made him the most expensive overseas player in the history of IPL. In fact, an entire playing XI can be created for less than the amount KKR paid for the Australian pacer and here's the team.
#1 Jason Roy
Jason Roy is arguably one of the most destructive batsmen in world cricket at present and was one of the most important players for England in their World Cup winning campaign. The opener has exhibited tremendous form this year and was one of the marquee players in the auction, but he was bought for just ₹1.5 crore by the Delhi Capitals. With a strike rate of 146 and an aggregate of 5000 runs in T20 cricket, he could turn out to be a snip at that price.
#2 Tom Banton
Tom Banton's name was doing the rounds before the auction, and he was tipped for massive bids. He had a sensational Vitality Blast campaign and also won himself a stint in the Big Bash with Brisbane Heat. An aggressive wicket-keeper batsman is always in demand and hence, it came as a surprise when the Englishman was bought by KKR for his base price of ₹1 crore. The youngster could turn out to be the perfect replacement for Chris Lynn at KKR.