5 most expensive IPL players of all time

Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 auction is all set to kickstart at Kochi today (December 23) at 2.30 pm. 10 franchises will bid for 405 players. The auctions have historically thrown some big surprises and this time also it is expected to give some out-of-the box outcomes. 

Star players like Sam Curran, Ben Stokes and Cameron Green are expected to be sold for big amounts due to their brilliant performances in the recent times. But who knows, someone like Kane Williamson or Allah Mohammad Ghaznafar, who is also youngest player in the auction, might get big packages.

Over the years, players like Jaydev Unadkat, Yusuf Pathan, Sourabh Tiwary have been sold for huge amounts but after failing to deliver, they were dropped by the franchises. 

Here is a list of most expensive IPL players: 

1.Ishan Kishan (Rs 15.25 crore): At the 2022 IPL auction, young gun Ishan Kishan emerged as the most expensive player as he was roped in by Mumbai Indians at a whopping price of Rs 15.25 crore. But the left-handed batter had an average season as he ended up with 481 runs in 14 matches at an average of 32.15 and strike-rate of 120. 

• It was also the first time that the franchise bid for more than Rs 10 crore  for a player at the auctions. Before Kishan, captain Rohit Sharma was the highest paid player at Rs 9.2 crore for Mumbai Indians.
• However, Mumbai Indians had one of the worst seasons as the team ended at the bottom of the points table with only four wins in 14 matches. 

2. Chris Morris (Rs 16.25 crore): The South-African allrounder was acquired by Rajasthan Royals at Rs 16.25 crore in 2021 auction. Morris pocketed 21 times more than his base price of Rs 75 lakh. 

• The following season, Morris emerged as the highest wicket taker for RR as he scalped 15 wickets in 11 matches. But with the bat, he had an underwhelming season as he could score only 67 runs at an average of 13.40. That was also the last IPL season for Morris as he hung up his boots after IPL 2021.

3. Yuvraj Singh (Rs 16 crore): The former Indian cricketer was purchased by Delhi Daredevils (DD) in 2015 at Rs 16 crore. Though the allrounder was not in the best of form those days and was struggling to find a spot in the national side.

• In 2014, he had received another big signing amount from the RCB at Rs 14 crore. 
• But Yuvraj also couldn't score big with the bat and could manage only 248 runs in 14 matches. Delhi released him the next season as SRH signed him for Rs 7 crore. Yuvraj proved lucky for SRH as it won its maiden trophy in 2016 under David Warner's captaincy. 

4. Pat Cummins (Rs 15.5 crore): The Australian pacer was acquired by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in 2020 season at Rs 15.5 crore. Cummins performed well that season as he got 12 wickets and contributed smartly with the bat including his decent death overs cameos.

• In 2021, he was released by KKR and bagged again by the team at Rs 7.25 crore, half the price which he was sold in 2020. 
• KKR had to release Cummins ahead of 2023 IPL as the Australian seamer wanted to focus on Ashes and pulled himself out of this season.

5. Kyle Jamieson (Rs 15 crore): The New Zealand pacer was a surprise pick of the auction as he was sold to Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at Rs 15 crore in 2021. Jamieson's performance with the red ball, especially against India, worked for him as he got 20 times his base price of Rs 75 lakh.

• But Jamieson could take only 9 wickets in 9 outings and with the bat he scored only 65 runs in 9 matches at a strike rate of 118.18. Jamieson opted out of IPL 2022 to focus on international cricket. He has again listed up for the IPL 2023 auction and his base price is Rs 1 crore.

  

   

The IPL auctions will be broadcast LIVE on Star Sports channels from 2.30 pm. It will also streamed LIVE on Jio Cinema App.