February 04, 2012 / 14:09 IST
Indian allrounder Ravindra Jadeja is the biggest catch so far, going for a whopping USD 2 million to the Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League auction for season five, which got underway at the ITC Royal Gardenia Hotel here on Saturday.
New Zealand's Brendon McCullum was the first player to be sold in the auction. He was taken by Kolkata Knight Riders for USD 900,000. McCullum had also started his IPL stint with the same franchise in its inaugural season.
Mahela Jayawardene was bought by the Delhi Daredevils for USD 1.4 mn, while his Sri Lankan teammate Muttiah Muralitharan was picked up by the Royal Challenges Bangalore for USD 2,20,000. England paceman James Anderson remained unsold among the five marquee players put up for sale in the first round of the auction.
Classical Indian batsman VVS Laxman was left unsold in the second list of players put up for sale. Veteran Australian batsman Brad Hodge was bought by Rajasthan Royals for USD 4,75,000, while another South African veteran Herchelle Gibbs was sold to Mumbai Indians for $ 50,000.
Players who remained unsold in the batsmen's list are: Tamim Iqbal (Bangladesh), Adrian Barath (West Indies), Ramnaresh Sarwan (West Indies), Darren Bravo (West Indies), Ian Bell (England), Owais Shah (England) and Upul Tharanga (Sri Lanka).
In the wicketkeepers' draw, Parthiv Patel was bought by Deccan Chargers for USD 6,50,000. Young Sri Lankan glovesman Dinesh Chandimal was pocketed by Rajasthan Royals for his base price of USD 50,000. Meanwhile, Matt Prior (England), Brendon Taylor (Zimbabwe) and Mark Boucher (South Africa) remained unsold.
In the allrounders' list, West Indies' Andre Russell was picked up for USD 4,50,000 by the Delhi Daredevils, while Australian Mitchell Johnson was bought by Mumbai Indians for USD 3,00,000. The other allrounders who remained unsold were Justin Kemp (South Africa), Marlon Samuels (West Indies), Arul Suppiah (England), Steven Smith (Australia), Ravi Bopara (England), Doug Bracewell (New zealand), Luke Wright (England) and Dwayne Smith (West Indies).
Kevin O'Brien of Ireland, who made ripples in the World Cup last year, too surprisingly remained unsold.
Team owners of all the franchises, excluding the Pune Warriors India, were present at the auction. Sahara India withdrew its sponsorship of the Indian cricket team and Pune Warriors on Saturday hours ahead of the auction.
"The season five of the IPL is coming up with some innovative ideas which will glitter the tournament," Rajiv Shukla, the chairman and commissioner of the league said before the auction got going.
The auction saw 144 players, including several former Kochi Tuskers Kerala players, went under the hammer. These players, picked according to a combination of their valuation and star worth, were put up for the auction.
Catch the live auction HERE. 
