It seems that Sunrisers Hyderabad is all set to end their title drought this season as they have made some major moves in the IPL 2024 auction. After buying the services of the Captain of the World Cup-winning team, Pat Cummins for a record-breaking 20.50 crore SRH took one more step ahead in its trivia of acquiring the best players by acquiring the services of Travis Head for a whopping 6.8 crore. SRH won the bid from none other than Chennai Super Kings. They further bolstered their lineup by grabbing the services of Wanindu Hasaranga for 1.5 crores.
Chennai Super Kings too was not behind in the bidding war as they grabbed the services of New Zealand’s star player Rachin Ravindra for 1.80 crore. They went on to grab the services of Daryl Micthell for a whopping 14 crores. Surprisingly, his base price was just 1 crore but he got a good deal of 14 crores as CSK & PBKS indulged in a bidding war & Kings made a final bid of 13.75 crores. However, the bid went in CSK’s favor who made a final bid of 14 crores & got the services of Micthell for IPL 2024. This means both star players Rachin & Mitchell will play for Men in yellow. Adding to the power is the presence of Conway in their lineup. Three-star Kiwi player in their lineup means CSK’s power is now doubled up.
Rajasthan Royals shed 7.4 crores for Rovman Powell
Another shocking earner in the bidding war is West Indies T20I Captain Rovman Powell. It was Rajasthan Royals who grabbed the prolific player’s service for a whopping 7.4 crores. Royals spent more than half of their auction purse of INR 14.5 crore on Powell, whose previous auction price was INR 2.8 crore when Delhi Capitals bought him in 2022. RR was also involved in a bidding war for Harry Brook but it was Delhi Capitals who got his services for 4 crores.. Brook had been bought for INR 13.25 crore in the 2023 auction by Sunrisers Hyderabad, who released him ahead of this auction.
Coming to former RCB player, Harshal Patel, even after a poor season in IPL 2023 he still got many takers in the IPL 2024 auction. Franchisees like Gujarat Titans, Punjab Kings, and Lucknow Super Kings all went for him. But it was Punjab Kings who were successful in grabbing his services for 11.75 crores. Initially, he was sold to RCB for a sum of 10.75 crores in the IPL 2022 auction.
On the other hand, Coetzee also attracted some bids after a stunning performance in the World Cup 2023. In the World Cup 2023 he proved his prowess by showing himself as a good wicket-taking option & a player who can play with the ball at a high pace. CSK made an opening bid for Coetzee but it was Mumbai Indians who grabbed his services for 5 crore. Then came Chris Woakes for whom KKR made the opening bid. But they failed to acquire his services as again it was Punjab Kings who won Woakes services with a bid of 4.2 crore.
Pat Cummins the most Expensive Buy of IPL 2024 Auction
Sunrisers Hyderabad stunned everyone by spending a huge amount of 20.50 crores for Pat Cummins & making him the most expensive buy in the history of IPL. Previously it was PBKS who spent a huge amount of 18.50 crores for England’s star all-rounder Sam Curran in the IPL 202 auction. The amount that SRH spent for Cummins was really surprising as the prolific player entered the auction for a base price of 2 cores. And it was CSK & MI that began the bidding for Pat Cummins. As the bid amount rose, CSK competed with Royal Challengers Bangalore before the final battle for Cummins was fought between RCB and SRH. Cummins had skipped the 2023 IPL to focus on international cricket; his previous auction price was INR 15.50 crore when Kolkata Knight Riders bought him in 2020.
Unsold Players in the First Round of IPL 2024 Auction
Australian batter Steven Smith & South African batter Rilee Rossouvw who listed themselves in 2 crores base price remained unsold. While Indian batters Manish Pandey and Karun Nair were unsold in the first set of capped batters.
Also read, IPL 2024 Auction, Players List, Available Purse- All Deets