India’s stylish batsman Yuvraj Singh was sold at his base price Rs 2 crore to Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), a franchise with which he debuted in the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2008.
Sunrisers Hyderabad, who retained Shikhar Dhawan at the IPL Auction for Rs 5.2 crore, refused to retain the Punjab-born all-rounder in the auction event at Ritz-Carlton, Bengaluru, on Saturday.
The 36-year-old is currently playing for his home team Punjab in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He started the tournament with an impressive fifty against Delhi.
In IPL, representing KXIP, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Delhi Daredevils and Sunrisers Hyderabad, Yuvraj has scored 2587 runs and claimed 36 wickets in 120 matches.+
Another batsman who returned home on Saturday was Gautam Gambhir who was bought by Delhi Daredevils for Rs 2.8 crore. Delhi made another daring bid to bag Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell after paying whopping Rs 9 crore.
Experienced spinner Harbhajan Singh, who played for Mumbai Indians for a decade, went to Chennai Super Kings at his base price Rs 2 crore.
Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan was bought for Rs 2 crore by Sunrisers Hyderabad, while the Orange Army paid Rs 3 crore for New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson.
Yuvraj Singh sent a message for the Kings XI Punjab fans, thanking the franchise for reviving him once again.
MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings retained West Indies’ Dwayne Bravo for Rs 6.4 crore, using the RTM card. England’s Joe Root, at a base price of 1.5 Rs crore, remained unsold on Day 1 of the IPL Auction.
