The opening day of the Indian Premier League 2022 mega auction was an action-packed event with Rs. 388.1 crore being spent. Teams came prepared with their auction strategies and made big, high-conviction buys on the players that they felt would fit the bill for their team. Indian players took home top dollar, with more than a handful breaching the Rs. 10 сrore barrier.
Ishan Kishan was the biggest buy of the day, setting back the Mumbai Indians a whopping Rs. 15.25 crore. Some were of the opinion that many players who were sold on the opening day were a shade overprices, but that can also be attributed to the dynamics of the auction, especially considering that there are two new teams, both of which were desperately looking to sign the best talent on offer.
The marquee set kicked off with veteran batsman Shikhar Dhawan, who set off a bidding war in the opening moments of the auction, as he eventually went to the Punjab Kings for Rs. 8.25 crore.
The Rajasthan Royals snapped up off-spinner R Ashwin for Rs. 5 crore, after a back-and-forth with the Punjab Kings, among other franchises. South African veteran Faf du Plessis went to the Royal Challengers Bangalore, while mercurial opener David Warner headed to his former franchise, the Delhi Capitals.
Shreyas Iyer also triggered a huge bidding war amongst the franchises and was eventually picked up by the Kolkata Knight Riders for Rs. 12.25 crore. The vastly experienced former KKR captain Dinesh Karthik went to the Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rs. 5.50 crore, while Eoin Morgan went unsold on the first day.
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The RCB also made two successively huge buys early on in the auction, as they invested heavily on Harshal Patel and Sri Lankan all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga, both of whom were part of the franchise in the previous season.
RR also picked up some top players, managing to snag Kiwi pacer Trent Boult and Shimron Hetmyer for Rs. 8 crore and Rs. 8.50 crore, respectively. The Jaipur franchise also went on to purchase pedigreed spinner Yuzvendra Chahal for Rs. 6.50 crore, in a deal that many considered a steal given his ability.
Indian pacers had a field day at the mega auction, with many fetching astronomically high amounts. Heading in to the auction, many were certain that the likes of Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, and Mohammed Shami would get the big bids.
That turned out to be just the case, with Shardul going for Rs. 10.75 crore, Chahar returning to the CSK for a whopping Rs. 14 crore, and Mohammed Shami heading to the Gujarat Titans for Rs. 6.25 crore.
The less experienced pacers also got some huge bids, as Shivam Mavi was bought back by the Kolkata Knight Riders for Rs. 7.25 crore, and Prasidh Krishna was purchased by the Rajasthan Royals for Rs. 10 crore.
Rahul Tewatia was a surprise, ending up setting the Gujarat Titans back Rs. 9 crore. Krunal Pandya was also a massive purchase, as he cost the Lucknow Super Giants Rs. 8.25 crore.
After an enthralling first day, the second day of the IPL auctions promises to be a thrilling watch, as there are still teams with big purses waiting for some top players that will be under the hammer on Day 2.
