Two Aussies find IPL homes in auction

Sydney Sixers allrounder Moises Henriques and Perth Scorchers batter Ashton Turner were the only Australians snapped up in Tuesday’s Indian Premier League auction.

The 31-year-old Henriques was picked up by Kings XI Punjab for about $198,100, while 25-year-old Turner was taken by Rajasthan Royals for $99,050.

The pair were among 23 Australian players to go under the hammer in Jaipur, with some big names overlooked for the 2019 Twenty20 tournament.

D’Arcy Short and Shaun Marsh had a base price of $387,600 – the highest among the Aussie contingent – and were ignored, along with Alex Carey and James Faulkner.

Adam Zampa, Usman Khawaja and Kane Richardson were other big names not taken.

A total of 60 players found homes for the tournament, which will run from March 29 to May 19 next year.

India pair Jaydev Unadkat (Rajasthan Royals) and Varun Chakaravarthy (Kings XI Punjab) hit the jackpot, each fetching more than $1.6 million.

While talented left-arm paceman Unadkat has represented his country in all three formats, spinner Chakaravarthy is relatively unknown but is reportedly capable of sending down seven different deliveries.

He also played a key role in Siechem Madurai Panthers’ triumph in the Tamil Nadu Premier League in August this year, taking 10 wickets in nine games.

Englishman Sam Curran (Kings XI Punjab), South African Colin Ingram (Delhi Capitals) and West Indian Carlos Brathwaite (Kolkata Knight Riders) also secured lucrative deals, each purchased for more than $900,000.

India Test trio Mohammed Shami (Kings XI Punjab), Hanuma Vihari, and Ishant Sharma (both Delhi Capitals) all found new teams during the auction, while star Test batter Cheteshwar Pujara was unsold.

Ten Australian players have been retained by their franchises, headlined by former Test captain Steve Smith (Rajasthan Royals) and ex-vice-captain David Warner (Sunrisers Hyderabad). 
Chris Lynn, Andrew Tye, Marcus Stoinis, Ben Cutting, Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Billy Stanlake and Shane Watson were also retained by their teams.

Mitchell Starc, Glenn Maxwell, Aaron Finch and Pat Cummins opted against returning to the IPL, while there are questions over the availability of Australia’s leading players for the tournament because of the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup in England and Wales.

Australia’s 15-man World Cup squad is set to attend a pre-tournament camp in May before they start the showpiece 50-over event with a fixture against Afghanistan on June 1.