India’s Rishabh Pant becomes the most expensive player in IPL history | Cricket news
Lucknow pick Pant for a record $3.2m in the IPL auction, followed by Shreyas Iyer for $3.17m, taken by Punjab.
India wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant has become the most expensive player in Indian Premier League (IPL) history after being sold for a record $3.2m as teams clash with world-class cricketers in the lucrative Twenty20 tournament.
A total of 577 players will be up for grabs in the two-day auction that began in Jeddah on Sunday.
Pant, England veteran James Anderson and New Zealand batsman Rachin Ravindra are among the top names on the auction list.
The 2023 record of $2.98m, paid by Kolkata Knight Riders for Australian pace bowler Mitchell Starc, was broken for the first time by Punjab Kings, who snapped up Shreyas Iyer for $3.17m. Iyer, 29, captained Kolkata Knight Riders to their third IPL crown this year.
The bidding war intensified for Pant, who captained the Delhi Capitals for three seasons but was let go ahead of this year’s big auction and Iyer’s Kolkata record quickly declined.
IPL reported that Lucknow Super Giants paid a “huge” $3.2m for the 27-year-old goalkeeper.
Lucknow made the first move and fought off bids from Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Delhi to sign the player who is known for his ability to hit sixes and could lead the franchise next season.
🚨 Most E𝘅pensive Player 👀
Let’s start rolling 🥁 🥁
Rishabh Pant to Lucknow Super Giants for a gigantic INR 25 Crore 🔝⚡️ #TATAIPLAAdho | #TATAIPL | @RishabhPant17 | @LucknowIPL |… pic.twitter.com/IE8DabNn4V
– Indian Premier League (@IPL) November 24, 2024
The auction started on a dramatic note when Indian fast bowler Arshdeep Singh’s name started the bidding war, which ended with Punjab getting the left-arm pace bowler for $2.13m.
This year, Australia’s left-arm fast bowler Starc was not retained by Kolkata. Went to Delhi Capitals for $1.39m.
Gujarat Titans paid $1.87m for England white bowler Jos Buttler, while Indian pacer Mohammed Shami went to Sunrisers Hyderabad for $1.18m.
Shami, 34, has recovered from a foot injury and is expected to join the Test team for the ongoing series in Australia.
The IPL has generated billions of revenue since its inception in 2008, turning the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) into one of the richest governing bodies in sports.
In June 2022, it sold the broadcasting rights for five seasons of the IPL to global media giants for $6.2bn.
