IPL Auction: After beating the record of Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc was brought by Kolkata Knight Riders at Rs. 24.75 Crores for IPL 2024.
Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc has shattered the record for the most expensive player at an IPL auction after being bought by the Kolkata Knight Riders for Rs. 24.75 Crores. Starc surpassed the winning bid of Rs. 20.50 crores that Sunrisers Hyderabad had made for Pat Cummins, who is also from the Australian Cricket Team. The IPL 2024 auction witnessed a riveting spectacle, culminating in the Kolkata Knight Riders securing Starc for an eye-watering prize, marking his return after an eight-year hiatus.
Moments after he set the IPL 2024 auction process on fire in Dubai, Australian pacer Mitchell Starc left a personalised message for the fans of the Kolkata Knight Riders, through which he is set to return to the IPL after eight years. In the video he shared yesterday after the auction, he greeted KKR fans and stated that he is thrilled to join the team for the upcoming IPL 2024 and that he can’t wait to get to Eden Gardens and experience their home fans and atmosphere.
He is looking forward to seeing KKR fans in matches. He ended his special video by saying, ‘Ami KKR’. Let us tell you that, with the opening bids starting between the Delhi Capitals and Mumbai Indians for the pacer, the Kolkata Knight Riders and Gujarat Titans entered the race as the bowler went past the nine-crore mark. After another intense bidding war between the two franchises, the KKR finally bagged the speedster.
Talking about the most expensive players in IPL 2024 after Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins was bought by Sunrisers Hyderabad at 20.50 crores, Daryl Mitchell by Chennai Super Kings at 14.00 crores, Harshal Patel by Punjab Kings at 11.75 crores, and Alzarri Joseph by Royal Challengers Banglore at 11.50 crores.
But, the IPL Auction 2024 also faced some disappointments. The biggest surprise in this year’s IPL auction came in the form of Steve Smith, who won’t be seen in action after the franchise showed no interest in acquiring him. On the other side, Aussie Pacer, Josh Hazelwood also failed to attract any bids in the IPL 2024 auction because of his unavailability in the first half of the tournament. Josh Inglis, Adil Rashid, Kuldeep Yadav, and Rassie Van Der Dusseb are the other big names who went unsold.
The IPL Auction 2024 took place at the Coca Cola Arena in Dubai at 1 p.m. (IST) on December 19, 2023. The auction was broadcast live on the Star Sports Network and was also available for live streaming on Jio Cinema. Meanwhile, various influential figures were seen at the forefront during the auction. Figures like Nita Ambani, Preity Zinta, Jhanvi Mehta (daughter of Juhi Chawla), Jay Mehta (husband of Juhi Chawla), Kaviya Maran, Kumar Sangakkara, Gautam Gambhir, and Ashish Nehra, among others, were present at the IPL Auction 2024.
Next up is the 17th Indian Premier League, which is scheduled to begin in the last week of March following the completion of the India-England Test Series. Although the trading window is scheduled to reopen tomorrow and run through the last night of the 2024 season, the squads are not yet complete. Up until then, teams are still able to make a few last-minute roster adjustments.
