PKL Auction 2018: 5 IPL cricketers who turned out cheaper than Monu Goyat
Monu Goyat, became the latest internet sensation for his latest record of claiming the highest ever contract as part of the VIVO Pro Kabaddi League, after his services were procured by the Haryana Steelers for a mind-boggling ₹151 lakh rupees.
He has also emerged as the talk of the town, even surpassing the likes of Nitin Tomar, Rahul Chaudhari to rise as the league's costliest player.
While Monu was expected to go for a high price given his exploits in the previous season, the icing on the cake was that his value went even higher than that of PKL's poster boy Rahul Chaudhari on a day that saw six players cross the ₹100 lakh margin while Manjeet Chhillar had to settle with base price and Ravinder Pahal went unsold.
Although the Pro Kabaddi League auction did not match the tension that is portrayed during the Indian Premier League auctions, the scene was almost similar with teams carefully chalking out their strategies while paralleling plotting the other franchises' downfall.
However, the spotlight belonged to Monu Goyat, who is now the highest paid non-cricket Indian athlete and is set to earn more than Sunil Chhetri, who signed a ₹150 lakh worth contract with Bengaluru FC in 2016.
Such was the magnitude of Haryana's purchase that it even eclipsed some contracts earned by cricketers in the 2018 IPL auctions. Here are 5 cricketers who were bought cheaper than Monu Goyat.
#5 Stuart Binny - ₹50 lakh
The Karnataka-based all-rounder, who has also represented India, played for the Royals from 2011-15 before moving to the Royal Challengers Bangalore, where he found a spot in the team but was not very consistent.
In the 2018 auction, he was not picked in the initial round but was picked in the accelerated process for a sum of ₹50 lakh by the Rajasthan Royals, and joined his statesmen Krishnappa Gowtham and Shreyas Gopal in the Royals' setup.
Unable to cement his place in the team initially, Binny was only a constant part of the Royals' team in the latter half of the tournament, but could not contribute much, scoring only 44 runs from 5 matches at a strike rate of 112.82 apart and did not pick a single wicket right through the tournament.