IPL auction and its bewildering dynamics

IPL 2023 mini auction took place in Kochi.

Big monies flowed in during the Indian Premier League mini auction in Kochi, on December 23. Team managements showed traditional mindsets with some of the top all-rounders in white-ball cricket cracking record deals on the basis of their recent performances. That ICC rankings and global reputation can be torn to shreds in auctions was once evident as two of the leading batsmen in the world – Joe Root and Kane Williamson – were just about accommodated at their base prices, and Ajinkya Rahane, once India’s Mr Dependable, won a consolation contract with Chennai Super Kings.

The IPL auction dynamics can be bewildering. It is difficult to gauge strategies, and in an intense and sometimes preposterous bidding momentum, teams may not get players they seek. At the end of the day, money matters in an open auction and since top players do not have the power to choose a team, they often land up with a wrong franchise. Sam Curran, who laughed all the way to bank after Punjab Kings outbid five other teams to pocket the young England all-rounder by doling out a record-breaking Rs 18.5 crore, is a classic example.

Despite being the player of the final in the recently-concluded T20 World Cup in Australia, Curran, who was also the man of the tournament, is neither among the top 20 T20 all-rounders in the world nor among the top 20 batsmen. According to the latest ICC rankings, the 24-year-old England player, is No. 5 in the T20 bowling list that is led by Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan, a Gujarat Titan.

Balance of teams is a much-talked about subject in the shortest format of the game. Franchises dole out record sums to ensure they have the right players at the right positions. While coaches keep playing around with their line-ups during crunch situations, in a game with very little margin for error, teams look for consistency, and contribution from each member of the team. Effectively, a team with 11 impacts players, runs the distance. Curran surely adds muscle to Shikhar Dhawan’s Punjab Kings, but whether he can alone make a difference remains to be seen.

READ | IPL 2023 auction: Talking points so far

Form is temporary in T20 cricket. It can be misleading as well. The history of IPL is replete with cases of the franchises not getting full return of investment. It can be bad spending, too. This long list features such superstars such as Yuvraj Singh, Kevin Pietersen, Glenn Maxwell, and even David Warner. If the last IPL is any yardstick, Chris Morris, bought by Rajasthan Royals at a record-breaking price of Rs 16 crore, was a big disappointment. The Royals broke their bank to buy the South African all-rounder, but Morris did precious little for Sanju Samson’s team.

Mumbai Indians’ Ishan Kishan (Rs 15.25 crore); Chennai’s Ravindra Jadeja (Rs 16 crore) and Kolkata Knight Riders’ Shreyas Iyer (Rs 12.25 crore) were all failures, and this list also included two icons of the game, Rohit Sharma (Rs 16 crore) and Virat Kohli (Rs 15 crore).

But cricket survives on faith and a huge dosage of expectation. Big teams such as Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings, and Kolkata Knight Riders have traditionally shown to ‘build’ teams rather than chop and change. Delhi Capitals, led by head coach Ricky Ponting, have also started to show similar mindset. These teams won’t randomly buy players and end up as losers. They may make strategic investments, but won’t be completely dependent on them.

The mini auction thus saw CSK buying Ben Stokes for a whopping Rs 16.25 crore, another record. It is unlikely, that MS Dhoni’s team will entirely swear by Stokes, who also offers an option to captain the men in yellow. A good team should have enough back-up. Mumbai, under new coach Mark Boucher, did a similar move by roping in Cameron Green for Rs 17.5 crore. The in-form Aussie all-rounder will fill the gap left by Kieron Pollard, and will add a lot of depth to a bowling attack that boasts of a fit-again Jofra Archer and Jasprit Bumrah.

If there is a jackpot for the luckiest man in the mini auction, it has perhaps gone to West Indian Nicholas Pooran. Discarded by Sunrisers Hyderabad for scoring a paltry 306 runs in 14 games last season, Pooran won a handsome Rs 16-crore deal from Lucknow Super Giants, eight times his base price after CSK, Rajasthan, and Delhi showed interest. A massive failure in the T20 World Cup, Pooran has become the most expensive wicketkeeper in IPL.
So, what swayed Lucknow to desperately seek this left-handed Caribbean batsman? Pooran’s recent form in the Abu Dhabi T10 was simply mind-boggling. At one stage, Pooran, who turned out for Deccan Gladiators, had smashed 19 fours and 21 sixes across half-a-dozen games to lead the scoring charts with a strike rate of over 200! KL Rahul will surely expect similar contribution in IPL 2023.

If Pooran was the luckiest ‘overseas’ buy, young fast bowler Shivam Mavi, who was not retained by Kolkata Knight Riders, was snapped up by Gujarat Titans for a handsome Ra 6 crore, 1,500 percent his base price of Rs 40 lakh. Considering that Bengal’s uncapped Mukesh Kumar, registered for a base price of Rs 20 lakh, won a contract with Delhi Daredevils for Rs 5.5 crore, a 2,750 percent gain, IPL’s absurdity during auction times came to the fore once again. Consider this - Delhi have veteran paceman Ishant Sharma in their ranks. He will get only Rs 50 lakh for his vast experience. Bizarre!

Soumitra Bose is a senior sports journalist, and a research scholar. Twitter: @Soumitra65. Views are personal, and do not represent the stand of this publication