Pat Cummins, the Australian cricket captain, made history in the Indian Premier League (IPL) auction by becoming the most expensive player ever. Sunrisers Hyderabad secured his services for a whopping Rs 20.50 crore, breaking the previous record held by Sam Curran at Rs 18.50 crore. Cummins, with a base price of Rs 2 crore, attracted bids from Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and Chennai Super Kings. The bidding war escalated until SRH entered, ultimately winning the auction and making Cummins the costliest IPL player ever.
In a thrilling moment, the bidding for Cummins reached the 20 crore mark, drawing cheers and applause from the audience at the Coca Cola Arena in Dubai. This surpassed the earlier record held by Sam Curran. Cummins, a World Cup-winning skipper for Australia, has an impressive T20 record, taking 55 wickets in 50 matches with a best of 3/15. His batting average of 16.90 in T20Is and contributions in 128 T20 games, including three fifties, make him a valuable lower-order batter.
Before Cummins, West Indies power hitter Rovman Powell and Australia’s explosive opener Travis Head also made headlines in the auction. Powell, with a base price of Rs 1 crore, attracted a fierce bidding war between Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals. Ultimately, Rajasthan Royals secured Powell’s services for a substantial Rs 7.4 crore. Powell, the WI T20I skipper, has an impressive T20I record, scoring 1,202 runs at an average of 26.71 and a strike rate over 143, with a century and five fifties.
Travis Head, known for his remarkable performances in the World Test Championship final and the ODI World Cup, found a new home in Sunrisers Hyderabad. With a hefty price tag, Head was the center of a bidding battle between Chennai Super Kings and SRH. Eventually, he joined the Orange family for a price of 6.8 crore, adding strength to the Sunrisers’ batting lineup.
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