IPL auction: Ben Stokes becomes highest paid overseas player ever; Imran Tahir, Ishant Sharma unsold

England’s Ben Stokes was the biggest draw at the 2017 Indian Premier League in Bengaluru on Sunday. After a furious bidding war involving Mumbai Indians, Delhi Daredevils and Sunrisers Hyderabad, the Rising Pune Super Giants emerged with the winning bid at a mind-boggling Rs 14.5 crore. Stokes thus became the most expensive overseas player ever in the IPL.

Tymal Mills was also sold for a staggering Rs 12 crore by the Royal Challengers Bangalore while India’s Karn Sharma was the highest-paid Indian at the auction at lunch with Mumbai Indians shelling out Rs 3.2 crore for his services.

At Rs 23.1 crore and Rs 23.35 crore respectively, the Delhi Daredevils and the Kings Xi Punjab had the most amount of money left in the bank before the auction. Here is a list of the amount of funds each franchise had left in the bank.

India’s Ishant Sharma, England’s Eoin Morgan and Mitchell Johnson were among seven players who had been listed with the highest base price at Rs 2 crore.

The other big news before the auction was that Mahendra Singh Dhoni is no longer of the Rising Pune Super Giants. He was replaced by Steve Smith as Australia’s captain, a decision announced on Sunday.

Also check out, the big money flops from last year’s auctions as well as the greatest hits.

Live updates:

3.30 pm: In the final set of this year’s auction, these are the players who were sold:

Aksh Deep Nath, Rs 10 lakh, Gujarat Lions

Darren Bravo, Rs 50 lakh, Kolkata Knight Riders

Manoj Tiwary, Rs 50 lakh, KKR

Sayan Ghosh, 10 lakh, KKR

Lockie Ferguson, Rs 50 lakh, RPS

2.50 pm: The UAE’s Chirag Suri is picked up by Gujaart Lions at his base price of Rs 10 lakh, while Bangaldesh’s Mehedi Hasan and Shabbir Rahman are unsold. The star of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Inter Zonal Trophy, Ishank Jaggi, is bought by KKR for Rs 10 lakh. Jaggi was added to the auction at the last moment.

2.40 pm: Dan Christian is sold to RPS for Rs 1 crore. Sri Lanka’s Asela Gunaratne, who struck a match-winning unbeaten 84 against Australia, is bought by Mumbai Indians for Rs 30 lakh. Rovman Powell is also sold to KKR for Rs 30 lakh, while KXIP buy Darren Sammy for the same price. Gujarat Lions are the only ones interested in Indian pacer Munaf Patel, for Rs 30 lakh.

2.30 pm: Hyderabad’s Mohammed Siraj, who has a base price of Rs 20 lakh, starts a bidding war and is finally snapped up by the Sunrisers for Rs 2.6 crore! Yowza! This is what he can do:

2.15 pm: Now for the bowlers.

Australia’s Nathan Coulter-Nile, who has a base price of Rs 1 crore, gets quite a few bids and finally is scooped up by Kolkata Knight Riders for Rs 3.5 crore. All other bowlers receive no bids again, including world No. 1 Imran Tahir, Kyle Abbott, Ishant Sharma, Pragyan Ojha and Ish Sodhi.

2.10 pm: Now, it’s time for the unsold all-rounders. Saurabh Tiwary goes to Mumbai Indians for his base price Rs 30 lakh. England’s Chris Jordan is picked up by SRH for Rs 50 lakh. There are no bids again for Irfan Pathan, Jonny Bairstow and Sean Abbott.

2.04 pm: It’s now time for the unsold players from the first round to get another chance of being bought. We start with the batsmen:

New Zealand batsman Martin Guptill is snapped up by Kings XI Punjab at his base price of Rs 50 lakh. England’s Jason Roy also goes at his base price of Rs 1 crore to Gujarat Lions.

1.45 pm: With a few more minutes to go for the restart, here’s some more reactions:

12.39 pm: And that’s lunch!

A quick recap:

Top Buys:

1. Ben Stokes to Pune for Rs 14.5 crore
2. Tymal Mills to Bangalore for Rs 12 crore
3. Trent Boult to Kolkata for Rs 5 crore
4. Kagiso Rabada to Delhi for Rs 5 crore
5. Pat Cummins to Delhi for Rs 4.5 crore

Top Indian buys:

1. Karn Sharma to Mumbai for Rs 3.2 crore
2. T Natarajan to Punjab for Rs 3 crore
3. Varun Aaron to Punjab for Rs 2.8 crore
4. Krishnappa Gowtham to Mumbai for Rs 2 crore
5. Aniket Choudhary to Bangalore for Rs 2 crore

12.38 pm: No players sold in the last set before lunch, spinners. Nathon Lyon at Rs 1.5 crore had no takers.

12.35 pm: Manpreet Gony bought by the Gujarat Lions for Rs 60 lakh.

12.32 pm: Looked like Varun Aaron wouldn’t get any bids for a second but Gujarat and Delhi are willing to go big for him. Bidding crossed Rs. 2.5 crore from a base price of Rs 30 lakh. Punjab entered at the last moment and get him for Rs 2.8 crore.

12.26 pm: Spat of players going unsold here. We’re onto the penulatimate set before lunch, fast bowlers. Punjab pick up Matt Henry for Rs 50 lakh. Pune snap up Jaydev Unadkat for just Rs 30 lakh.

12.18 pm: KKR pick up all-rounder Rishi Dhawan for Rs 55 lakh.

12.15 pm: There’s a furious bidding war between Mumbai and Gujarat to get the services of Karn Sharma. Things slow down at Rs 2.8 crore from a base price of Rs 30 lakh. Hyderabad retreat at Rs 3.2 crore. Mumbai Indians get him at Rs 3.2 crore.

12.10 pm: Another England all-rounder has got the franchisees interested. Chris Woakes enters at a base price of Rs 2 crore. SOLD to Kolkata Knight Riders at Rs 4.2 crore.

12.05 pm: No takers for Marlon Samuels, either. He won’t like that! Or Darren Bravo.

12.00 noon: No takers for Mitch Swepson, i.e: Shane Warne 2.0. Hyderabad pick up Pravin Tambe for Rs 10 lakh. Manoj Tiwary goes unsold. Cheteshwar Pujara, India’s Test mainstay, is here now. Will anyone go for him? Anyone at all? Nope.

11.56 am: Another Afghan player is sold. It’s the feisty spinner, Rashid Khan. Starts at Rs 50 lakh, Mumbai and Gujarat furiously bid for him and drive the price up to Rs 4 crore. SOLD for Rs 4 crore to Hyderabad. What a day for Afghan cricket!

11.52 am: Uncapped spinners now. Murugan Ashwin out. He was the surprise last year and he’s in demand this year as well. He’s going to the capital for Rs 1 crore. Not Rs 4.5 crore like last year, but still a pretty decent amount.

11.47 am: Nathu Singh made headlines when he was bought by Mumbai Indians last year for Rs 3.2 crore but they didn’t play him in the entire season and released him. Gujarat Lions have snapped him up for a much cheaper Rs 50 lakh this time.

Basil Thampy also goes to Gujarat for Rs 85 lakh.

11.45 am: Another bidding war, this time for Thangarasu Natarajan from Tamil Nadu. Bid started at Rs 10 lakh, it surged to Rs 1.5 crore in no time. Doubles to Rs 3 crore. Punjab really, really want him and they get him.

Natarajan is supposed to be a death overs specialist.

11.33 am: The bid for left-arm seamer Aniket Choudhary has ratcheted up to Rs 1 crore from a base price of just Rs 10 lakh. Bangalore take the bid to Rs 2 crore. He’s SOLD. Along with Gowtham, becomes the highest-paid Indian player at the auction.

11.30 am: Bidding going for uncapped wicket-keepers now. Aditya Tare goes to Delhi Daredevils for Rs 25 lakh. Sunrisers Hyderabad pick up Eklavya Dwivedi for Rs 75 lakh. No takers for Afghanistan’s Mohammad Shahzad. Formerly of Kolkata, Mavinder Bisla gets no bids.

Perhaps, Aditya Tare’s greatest moment in the IPL:

11.17 am: Krishnappa Gowtham is up next. Both Kolkata and Mumbai like what they’ve seen of him. The bid is up at Rs 1.2 crore. Hyderabad enters late but Mumbai hold on and get him for Rs 2 crore.

Gowtham has been in good form in domestic cricket and in the Karnataka Premier League. And he’s currently become the highest-paid Indian at this auction.

11.16 am: Ground-breaking! Mohammed Nabi becomes the first Afghanistan player to be sold at the IPL auction! Goes to Hyderabad for Rs 30 lakh.

11.12 am: Ankeet Bawane goes to Delhi Daredevils for Rs 10 lakh. No takers for Prithvi Shaw or Unmukt Chand or Umang Sharma. Tanmay Agarwal goes to Hyderabad for Rs 10 lakh but Afghanistan’s Asghar Stanikzai goes unsold.

11.10 am: We’re off again. Uncapped batsman now. Delhi have already reached their cap of nine overseas players and can’t buy any more of them.

11.07 am: Some reactions:

Marlon Samuels also probably doesn’t think much of Ben Stokes’s asking price:

10.55 am: So, the big news till now. Looks like all the franchises are desperate for fast bowlers.

Ben Stokes sold to Pune for Rs 14.5 crore

Tymal Mills sold to Bangalore for Rs 12 crore.

10.54 am: Imran Tahir up next. Unfortunately, he doesn’t attract any bid. Ok. That’s a surprise.

10.52 am: Among the spinners, Lakshan Sandakan, Ish Sodhi and Brad Hogg go unsold.

10.50 am: Kyle Abbott goes unsold. Here’s Sanjiv Goenka on the Ben Stokes deal.

10.49 am: Ishant Sharma goes unsold. That’s a bit of a surprise, but maybe it was the high base price?

10.47 am: A great deal! Mumbai Indians gets Mitchell Johnson at his base price, Rs 2 crore. They’re delighted at the table.

10.45 am: Another pace bowler has a good outing. Australia’s Pat Cummins goes to Delhi Daredevils for Rs 4.5 crore.

10.36 am: Ben Stokes and Eoin Morgan have company. Finally, another English player has takers. It’s Tymal Mills, the left-arm pacer. Kings XI Punjab and Mumbai Indians are in the bidding. Punjab give up at Rs 7.2 crore. RCB enter the fray and take it to Rs 7.5 crore. Now, KKR enter the fray. Bid is at Rs 8.2 crore. It’s not Rs 10 crore now, is it?! For Tymal Mills, remember. RCB GET HIM. For Rs 12 crore. Tymal Mills, you beauty.

Maybe they didn’t want him to bowl at Chris Gayle?

10.34 am: New Zealand’s Trent Boult are up next and Kolkata Knight Riders have finally made a bid. But they’re not going to get away with it easily. Mumbai Indians joins the bidding. KKR want him, they really want him. They have the bid at Rs 5 crore. Going...going...GONE. SOLD!

10.31 am: The hugely-talented Kagiso Rabada is up for the auction. One of world cricket’s most talented pacers. Delhi and Punjab want his services. How much will they go for? Delhi get him for Rs 5 crore.

10.27 am: West Indies’ Nicholas Pooran, a wicket-keeper, is sold to Mumbai Indians for Rs 30 lakh. The only keeper sold till now. Here’s what he’s capable of:

10.25 am: Looks like Ben Stokes was the outlier among England cricketers at the IPL this year. No bids for his team-mate and England wicket-keeper Jonny Bairstow. UNSOLD.

10.22 am: Rajeev Shukla, chairman of the IPL governing council, blames Bengaluru traffic for turning up late to the auctions. Ok then...

10.15 am:

Players sold till now:

Angelo Mathews (Rs 2 crore) and Corey Anderson (Rs 1 crore) to Delhi Daredevils

Eoin Morgan (Rs 2 crore) to Kings XI Punjab

Ben Stokes to Rising Pune Super Giants for Rs 14.5 crore

Pawan Negi (Rs 1 crore) to Royal Challengers Bangalore

10.07 am: To sum up, Pune have exhausted almost their entire kitty on Ben Stokes. They have only Rs 3 crore left. Not a single bid from the Kolkata Knight Riders so far, which is intriguing.

10.03 am: Corey Anderson goes to Delhi Daredevils for Rs 1 crore. No takers for Sean Abbott.

9.53 am: THE BIG ONE. Ben Stokes has been announced with a base price of Rs 2 crore. Mumbai and Bangalore take the bid to Rs 4 crore in a matter of seconds. Delhi join but Mumbai won’t give up. Furious bidding as it goes past Rs 8 crore. Then Rs 9 crore and Mumbai take it to Rs 10 crore. Delhi thought they had him at Rs 10.5 crore but Sunrisers Hyderabad have entered the fray and taken it to Rs 11 crore. Delhi fight but Hyderabad go to Rs 13 crore.

And now a new bidder. As soon as Delhi are out, Rising Pune Super Giants enter the fray and take the bid to Rs 13.5 crore. Sunrisers Hyderabad finally retreat at Rs 14.5 crore.

Mind=

9.51 am: Delhi Daredevils enter the fray. Pick up Angelo Mathews for Rs 2 crore.

9.46 am: We finally have a bidding war...and for Pawan Negi of all people! The Gujarat Lions and the Rising Pune Super Giants take the bid to Rs 55 lakh, but Pune withdraws. At the last moment, the Royal Challengers Bangalore take the bid to Rs 60 lakh. They hold on and go to Rs 80 lakh. Gujarat withdraws, Sunrisers Hyderabad enter the bidding and it touches the Rs 1 crore mark. SOLD. Goes for Rs 1 crore to the Royal Challengers Bangalore. A good price, but still quite a come-down from last year’s Rs 8.5 crore.

Just to refresh, this was his performance last year:

9.44 am: First Indian player comes up. Saurabh Tiwary. Rs 30 lakh....and unsold. Only one player sold in the first few seven. What is happening??

9.41 am: No takers for Jason Roy, Faiz Fazal and Alex Hales as well.

9.38 am: Eoin Morgan. Only one bid and he goes to the Kings XI Punjab at Rs 2 crore. A good buy. Especially when he’s capable of this...

9.36 am: Martin Guptill. Explosive New Zealand batsman. Base price Rs 50 lakh. And goes unsold. For the second time in an IPL auction.

9.30 am: We’re off. Rahul Johri, the current BCCI CEO, takes us all on a nostalgic look back at the last 10 years of the IPL. Remember that McCullum innings which kickstarted it all?