Ishan Kishan found a new home in Sunrisers Hyderabad, while Royal Challengers Bengaluru zipped in to take away Phil Salt in the Indian Premier League (IPL) mega auction in Jeddah on Sunday. In the capped wicketkeepers, South Africa’s Quinton de Kock came up first with bids from Rs 2 crore. Initially, there wasn’t any movement, but Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) opened the bidding by raising the paddle. Soon, Mumbai Indians (MI) came in at Rs 2.2 crore. SRH didn’t allow MI to let go easily, but the five-time champions eventually led at Rs 3 crore. Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) came in to intensify the bidding war and acquired his services for Rs 3.6 crore.
England’s Jonny Bairstow, who last played for Punjab Kings, was next to follow and went unsold. One of the leading run-scorers of the last season, swashbuckling opener Phil Salt, came in at Rs 2 crore.
The Royal Challengers Bengaluru and MI were locked in a fierce bid, with the price escalating rapidly. After MI decided to opt out of the race, KKR entered the fray.
RCB raised the bid to Rs 8 crore, and KKR came right at it with Rs 8.25 crore. The bid reached Rs 9 crore and eventually zipped past Rs 10 crore. Both tables pondered on their next move, and RCB eventually sealed the deal at Rs 11.5 crore.
After missing out on Salt, KKR quickly wrapped up Afghanistan keeper-batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz for his base price of Rs 2 crore. India’s out-of-favour Ishan Kishan came in, and another intense bidding war followed.
The bid began on Rs 2 crore, and MI straightaway got into action to ensure a reunion. Punjab Kings joined the action for the in-demand explosive wicketkeeper batter. As the bid escalated to Rs 5 crore, MI pulled out, and Delhi Capitals decided to have a taste of the action.
The back and forth continued, but PBKS stood in the firm position of taking away Kishan, with the bid standing at Rs 10 crore. As things looked almost done and dusted, SRH arrived to add more firepower to their batting unit. They landed the winning bid, which stood at Rs 11.25 crore.
Jitesh Sharma attracted attention from a couple of franchises but RCB looked to take away the Vidarbha-based player. PBKS decided to use RTM but opted out to match RCB’s Rs 11 crore bid.
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