The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 auction saw some of the biggest names in world cricket being purchased for large sums of money by the ten franchises. Several players received a significant hike while some witnessed a massive cut from their previous salary.
There were 137 Indian players and 67 foreign players in total. In the highly entertaining mega auction, the ten franchises spent a total of INR 551,70,00,000. A total of 108 players received bids worth more than INR 1 crore, with 11 breaking the INR 10 crore barrier. The only teams with 25 players each were Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Mumbai Indians (MI), and Punjab Kings (PBKS). In the previous mega auction, which took place in 2018, eight teams bought 169 players. Among the 169 players, there were 113 Indian cricketers. The total amount spent was INR 4,31,70,00,000 and the most expensive player was Ben Stokes.Â
The most shocking event of the day was when Mr IPL, Suresh Raina wasn’t picked by any team. The former CSK batsman remained unsold on both days of the IPL 2022 mega auction. He had set a base price of INR 2 crore and not a single team expressed interest in bringing the IPL veteran to their squad.
The auction’s top earner was Ishan Kishan, who was re-signed by MI for a massive amount of INR 15.25 crore. Kishan was MI’s first-ever INR 10 crore+ auction purchase in the franchise’s 15-year history.
Top Gainers:
Five players had seen their previous IPL salary increase by 2000% or more. In 2021, four of them belonged to Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). Harshal Patel was brought on board by RCB in 2021 for INR 20 lakh but was bought for INR 10.75 crore (53.75 times more than his previous salary) in the recently concluded auction.
Meanwhile, the INR 10 crore bid by Rajasthan Royals (RR) for Prasidh Krishna has made the pacer 50 times richer. Prasidh was previously with the KKR, where he has bought for a base price of INR 20 lakh in 2018.
Deepak Chahar was bought for INR 80 lakh by CSK in the 2018 auction. The MS Dhoni-led franchise spent INR 14 crore for the pacer in the IPL 2022 auction.
PBKS’ most expensive signing was the English all-rounder, Liam Livingstone, who was bought by the team for INR 11.50 crore. Livingstone’s fortune shifted radically within a year after being purchased by RR for just INR 75 lakh in 2021.
Wanindu Hasaranga, a Sri Lankan all-rounder, was RCB’s joint-most expensive purchase of the auction, with a salary of INR 10.75 crore. Hasaranga is one of the most promising players in world cricket, with his leg-spin and hitting ability making him a valuable asset.
Top losers:
In 2017, RCB had paid Tymal Mills INR 12 crore. The pacer was bought by the five-time IPL champions for INR 1.59 crore in the IPL 2022 auction. Mills saw a drop of INR 10.50 crore.
Krishnappa Gowtham, who earned a record INR 9.25 crore at the auction last year, was bought for Rs 90 lakh by the new IPL franchise, Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on Day 2. Gowtham received a massive cut of INR 8.35 crore.
After paying a whopping INR 15.5 crore to sign the Australian all-rounder, Pat Cummins in 2020, KKR re-signed him for just INR 7.25 crore this season, a drop of INR 8.25 crore.
Riley Meredith received a salary of INR 8 crore from PBKS in 2021. Meredith was bought by the Mukesh Ambani-backed franchise for INR 1 crore in the recently concluded auction. The Aussie will be providing his services to MI in IPL 2022 with a major pay cut of INR 7 crore from his previous salary.
The IPL veteran, Manish Pandey also found a spot on the list. Pandey was being paid INR 11 crore by the SRH in IPL 2021 and will be receiving INR 4.60 crore after being bought by LSG. A pay cut of INR 6.40 crore.