New Delhi: India discard Yuvraj Singh and South Africa opener Hashim Amla will be the star attractions in IPL 8 auctions that will see quite a few Indians and International players going under the hammer here today.
Last year's most expensive buy, Yuvraj, who was picked by Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rs. 14 crores, will once again be one of the biggest names to hit the auction table this time around.
The other marquee players that will be auctioned, apart from Yuvraj, include former Delhi Daredevils captain Kevin Pietersen and their costliest player last year, Dinesh Karthik.
South Africa's Amla is another big fish waiting to be bought by the franchises, who will be ready with their respective strategic teams.
The other top flight players who will be up for auction this year include Mahela Jayawardene, Eoin Morgan, Kumar Sangakkara, Murali Vijay, Darren Sammy, Angelo Mathews, Aaron Finch and Alex Hales.
The auction will be conducted by Richard Madley, a professional auctioneer from England who has been conducting the player auctions since the inaugural IPL season in 2008.
Ahead of the auction, a total of 122 cricketers including 78 Indians and 44 overseas players have been retained by the franchises for the 2015 season, while six Indian cricketers have been traded during the window for player trade this year.
The franchisees will have an additional salary purse of Rs. 3 crore above the balance remaining from the Rs. 60 crore last year along with the amount generated from the release of players.
Having released some big-name players, this year auction would be crucial for the franchisees like Delhi Daredevils and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) who are also expected to be the biggest spenders of the year.
After releasing the maximum of 13 players including Kevin Pietersen, Dinesh Karthik, Murali Vijay and Ross Taylor, Delhi Daredevils in a view of building a revamped squad will have the maximum purse of Rs. 40 crore.
RCB released Albie Morkel, Muttiah Muralidharan and Yuvraj Singh who was the most expensive purchase last year with a price of Rs. 14 crore, they will be having the second highest Rs. 21 crore in their purse in the auction.
Sunrisers Hyderabad have Rs. 20.85 crore after releasing Aaron Finch, Darren Sammy, Irfan Pathan and Amit Mishra. Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals have Rs. 1.3 crore each while Kings XI Punjab and Mumbai Indians have 11.8 crore and 10 crore respectively.
Chennai Super Kings will have the minimum purse of Rs. 5 crore after retaining all their big names.
According to the reports, England one-day captain Eoin Morgan, Indian allrounder Irfan Pathan, former Australian batsman Michael Hussey, Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews, Sri Lanka batsman Tillkaratne Dilshan, West Indies allrounder Marlon Samuels, and Australia batsman Cameron White, all of whom have a base price of Rs. 1.5 crore.
England allrounder Ravi Bopara, Australia's Twenty20 captain Finch, India seamer Zaheer Khan fall in the 1 crore bracket while in form Indian opener Murali Vijay opted for a base price of Rs. 50 lakh.
The 2015 season will begin on April 8 with a clash between the defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Mumbai Indians and end on May 24.
