Australian quicks Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc each smashed the Indian Premier League auction record as franchises took strong fancy to the recent World Cup winners ahead of next year’s competition.
Cummins captained the Aussies to World Cup glory on Indian soil last month, toppling the previously unbeaten hosts in a showpiece final in Ahmedabad.
Following a bidding war involving four teams, the seamer was eventually snapped up by Sunrisers Hyderabad, who paid just shy of £2million to break the previous record set last year, when England’s Sam Curran sold to Punjab Kings for £1.77m.
The new mark, however, lasted little more than an hour before Starc was sold to Kolkata Knight Riders for a staggering £2.34million.
The left-armer has not played in the IPL since 2015 in order to prioritise international cricket across formats for Australia but will return for the spring tournament, which is quickly followed by a T20 World Cup in the USA and Caribbean.
"Our Test squad WhatsApp group has been going off to say its our shout to get dinner next,” Starc said of his and Cummins’ hefty pay-day. “Something to do ahead of the Boxing Day Test. It’s a special night for both of us.”
Cummins also missed last year’s IPL in order to focus on a hectic schedule, which saw him lead Australia not only to the World Cup, but also the World Test Championship crown, as well as retaining the Ashes with a drawn series in England.
Josh Hazlewood, the third member of Australia’s famed seam attack, went unsold during the first round of bidding having confirmed he will only be available for part of the tournament due to the expected birth of his first child, but Travis Head, man of the match in the World Cup final, was also picked up by Sunrisers in a £645,000 deal.
New Zealand players also benefitted from a strong World Cup, with all-rounder Daryl Mitchell bought by Chennai Super Kings for £1.3million as a likely replacement for Ben Stokes, while Rachin Ravindra earned his first IPL contract in a modest £170,000 deal with the same franchise.
