In an unprecedented event in the history of Pepsi IPL Player Auction, the uncapped players from India and around the world were put up for auction in Bangalore. More than 200 domestic players were part of the auction and many of them ended up with the big bucks at the end of the day.
At 3 crore 75 lakhs, the Railways leg-spinner Karn Sharma bagged the highest bid among the uncapped players and will play for SunRisers again this year. Let us analyzethe trends that were seen at the auction in context of the uncapped players and the impact which it will have on domestic cricket.
Before this year the uncapped players were getting their salaries as per the number of seasons they had played in the Ranji Trophy. A person who had played one season got Rs.10 lakhs, two seasons fetched him Rs. 20 lakhs and if he had played 3 seasons and beyond he was paid Rs. 30 lakhs. Over the 6 years that IPL has been taking place annually, the important roles played by the domestic players have been the difference between the teams that have won and the teams that have not.
A restricted salary cap for these players fomented the under-the-table deals between the players which came into light when a popular Hindi news channel did a sting on a few players. This sting ruined the career of fast bowler, T Sudhindra from MP who was coming into limelight that year. To tackle this problem of backdoor deals BCCI brought in the auctions which turned out to be a blessing in disguise for some players.
The major factors that propelled the team owners to spend more money on these uncapped players were their performance in last year’s IPL, their performance in the just concluded Ranji Trophy season and the loyalty of the player towards a team. The highest sale among the uncapped players, Karn Sharma was the under-25 player of the IPL last year. The next highest bid was for Himachal all-rounder Rishi Dhawan who was the highest wicket taker in RanjiTrophy this season followed by KedarJadhav who was the leading run scorer there. Shelling out large sums of money for average players like Aditya Tare and JaspritBumrah corroborates my point about franchise loyalty.
This leads me to the players with much higher potential and prospects, but they have been bought at lesser prices by the teams. Unmukt Chand, who was bought by Rajasthan Royals for just 65 lakhs, has been a steal for the team. If we take out last year’s IPL, Unmukt has been amongst the highest run getters in all the white-ball tournaments. If we limit ourselves to the T20s only then he struck 2 centuries in Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 event last year and was on a blitzkrieg during the recent DY Patil T20 and PSPB T20 in Mumbai where he scored a 38 ball century as well. The other U-19 World Cup star, Baba Aparajith was bought by CSK for only 10 lakhs and Vijay Zol by RCB for 30 lakhs, at their base price only. Aparajith who scored a double century in Duleep Trophy and then had an affluent Ranji season did not deserve to be bought at 10 lakhs whereas Vijay Zol who is the current captain of India U-19 team defending the cup in UAE was also a very cheap buy.
Mandeep Singh, the Punjab batsman, was also bought at a very less price by KXIP, while they spent a whopping 1.3 crore for Gurkeerat Mann which perplexed everyone.
The infusion of the auction for uncapped players will lead to a more sound domestic structure, since the players would prefer performing consistently in order to catch the eye of the IPL scouts and get more money.
I asked a few uncapped players who have been bought in auction about the impact of these auctions on domestic cricket and here is what they have to say.
1) It gives them a chance to compete with the international stars and develop a sense of worth when they are bought in the auctions. Recognition is an important part in enhancing the confidence of the players and also gives the unpicked players a determination to work hard to attain it.
- Unmukt Chand (Bought by Rajasthan Royals for 65 lakhs)
2) Yes, it will obviously enhance domestic cricket as it’s a great opportunity for the players to show their worth on a big stage like IPL. They will improve as players and will gain lot of experience when they learn how to handle big game pressure.
- MananVohra (Retained by Kings XI Punjab for 4 crores)
3) It will allow the players to work hard as the worth for their work will be valued at these auctions. Removal of the earlier existing salary cap means that these players will also get money coupled to the recognition IPL was already providing them.
- Milind Kumar (Bought by Delhi Daredevils for 10 lakhs)
4) Youngsters like us will be looking forward to performing well in the domestic circuit and get a place in the IPL teams which is a good thing for domestic cricket.
- Baba Aparajith (Bought by Chennai Super Kings for 10 lakhs)
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