South African all-rounder Chris Morris set the records tumbling as he became the most expensive buy at the Indian T20 League auction on Thursday, February 18.
Morris, who last featured for Bangalore, had a base price of Rs 75 lakhs and soon became part of a heavy bidding war between Mumbai, Punjab, Bangalore, and Rajasthan.
As the bid for the 33-year-old went past Rs 13 crores, Mumbai and Rajasthan wrestled for his signature but in the end, it was Rajasthan who prevailed with a record bid of Rs 16.25 crore.
Base price - INR 75 Lac
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) February 18, 2021
Sold for - INR 16.25 Cr@rajasthanroyals win the bidding war to bring @Tipo_Morris on board. 🔥🔥@Vivo_India #IPLAuction pic.twitter.com/m5AMqKE1Dy
With the purchase, Chris Morris eclipsed the record held by former India stalwart Yuvraj Singh, who was purchased by Delhi Daredevils for Rs 16 crore in the 2015 edition, and Pat Cummins, a Rs 15.5 crore signing for Kolkata in the previous edition.
Earlier, Glenn Maxwell became the first multi-million purchase at the player auction when Bangalore secured his services for 14.25 crore, shrugging off competition from Chennai and Kolkata.
Here are the top five most expensive players in the history of the Indian T20 League auctions:
- Chris Morris - 16.25 crore in 2021 (Bought by Rajasthan)
- Yuvraj Singh - 16.00 crore in 2015 (Bought by Delhi)
- Pat Cummins - 15.50 crore in 2020 (Bought by Kolkata)
- Kyle Jamieson - 15.00 crore in 2021 (Bought by Bangalore)
- Glenn Maxwell - 14.25 crore in 2021 (Bought by Bangalore)
Feature image courtesy: Twitter/ rajasthanroyals
