Records tumbled at the IPL auction overnight, with Indian wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant becoming the most expensive player in history. While the Kiwis didn’t reach the same heights, they still had a successful night.
Nearly 600 players are up for grabs at the two-day auction in Jeddah, with Black Caps Devon Conway, Indian fan favourite Rachin Ravindra, and Trent Boult snapped up on the first night.
The Lucknow Super Giants shattered the 2023 record of 247.5 million rupees ($5.023m), which Kolkata paid for Australian quick Mitchell Starc, by securing Pant’s services for 270m rupees ($5.480m). Starc suffered a big pay cut this time around, going only for 117.5m rupees ($2.384m).
Boult was the most expensive of the Kiwis, joining the Mumbai Indians for 125m rupees ($2.537m). Conway followed, being picked up by the Chennai Super Kings for 62.5m rupees ($1.268m). Meanwhile, young star Ravindra will also head to the Super Kings after being bought for 40m rupees ($811,882).
Former Australian opening batsman David Warner and England’s Jonny Bairstow were not sold but could be picked up later tonight on the second day.
Dates for the IPL season have not yet been released.
Elsewhere, the first cricket test between the Black Caps and England starting Thursday at Hagley Oval in Christchurch is verging on a sell-out. New Zealand Cricket’s confirmed capacity is exhausted for day three on Saturday while limited tickets remain for days one, two and four.
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