The 5 most expensive players of the Hockey India League 2016

The HIL players auction took place on 17th SeptemberThe introduction of the new scoring rule in the Hockey India League 2016, that a field goal will be counted as two, saw demand for strikers spike up in the players' auction. The auction that concluded on September 17th in New Delhi witnessed some intense bidding and a number of young Indian players fetching respectable bids.Unsurprisingly, it was the overseas specialist strikers who drew the highest bids, with a record amount being spent on one of them. Indian captain and ace midfielder Sardar Singh’s bid was disappointingly low and there was a dark horse wearing the Indian colours amongst the foreigners.Here are the five players who had the highest bids at the recently concluded auction: 

#5 Akashdeep Singh - $84,000

Akashdeep Singh

A number of precedents were set by the young forward from Punjab. He became the highest paid Indian in the HIL 2016 and the only Indian in the top five. The Uttar Pradesh Wizards paid Rs. 55,18,800 for the ONGC player. 

The twenty-one-year-old was quite surprised at the price bid for him and was quick to express the pressure that the title of “Most Expensive Indian” carried with it. He said that he is excited to play alongside Aussie great Jamie Dwyer.