Chennai, Feb 1: They are not exactly T20 stars, but retired Australian skipper Ricky Ponting and his successor Michael Clarke have attracted the highest base price of $400,000 (approx. Rs. 2.1 crore) among the 101 names who will go under the hammer in the IPL players’ auction to be held here on Sunday. There are four marquee players in the list, which expectedly does not feature a single Pakistani player even this year.
The other two marquee players are South African all-rounder Johan Botha and out-of-favour Indian pacer R.P. Singh, whose base price has been pegged at $100,000.
R.P. Singh was bought by Mumbai Indians last year for $600,000, but after a dismal show of 10 wickets from 11 matches, he was released by the franchise. Botha, on the other hand, has attracted a base price of $300,000.
Darren Sammy, who captained the West Indies in its World T20 Championship triumph last year, will be among the first-timers up for sale. His base price has been set at $100,000. Among other international players, England’s Matt Prior and Ravi Bopara — both of whom went unsold last season — have a base price of $100,000 and $200,000.
Special Correspondent reports from New Delhi
Lehmann is KXIP coach
Former Australian batsman and coach for Deccan Chargers Darren Lehmann will be the new coach of Kings XI Punjab in this year’s Indian Premier League. Lehmann, who in the inaugural edition of the IPL in 2008 joined Rajasthan Royals only as a cover for South Africa’s Graeme Smith, will be third full-time coach for Kings XI since the inception of the competition.
Comments
Add new comment