How the teams measure up after the IPL 7 auction

While Delhi Daredevils and Royal Challengers Bangalore exhausted their full auction kitty of Rs 60 crore, Rajasthan Royals, says Harish Kotian, did shrewd business, buying as many as 25 players and still ending up with Rs 5.55 crore remaining at the end of the auction.

Big bucks flowed at the two-day Players’ Auction in Bangalore as eight Indian Premier League franchises spent heavily to acquire the best players from around the world for the seventh season of the cash-rich T20 tournament.

While Yuvraj Singh’s hefty price tag of Rs 14 crore was expected, Delhi Daredevils left many surprised by paying Rs 12.5 crore for Dinesh Karthik, who was dropped from the Indian team last year.

In comparison, Kevin Pietersen, who will be available for the entire duration of the IPL after England told him that he will not be considered again for international cricket, was another high-profile purchase for Delhi Daredevils at Rs 9 crore.

While Daredevils and Royal Challengers Bangalore exhausted their full auction kitty of Rs 60 crore, Rajasthan Royals continued to be shrewd as ever as they bought as many as 25 players and still ended up with Rs 5.55 crore remaining at the end of the auction.

Here’s a look at the teams after the auction:

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Chennai Super Kings:

Total players: 20

Total spent: Rs 59.8 crore
 
Chennai Super Kings went into the auction with a kitty of just Rs. 21 crore, having used up most of their overall budget of 60 crore in retaining five players ahead of the auction.

The two-time champions secured their top performers, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin and Dwayne Bravo.

Despite the limited budget, they were aggressive at the start, spending Rs 4.75 crore to retain South Africa's Faf du Plessis as they looked to keep most of the players.

They also bought all-rounder Dwayne Smith for Rs 4.5 crore, while adding explosive Kiwi batsman Brendon McCullum for Rs 3.25 crore.

Their most surprising pick was veteran pacer Ashish Nehra for a massive Rs 2 crore!

However, they were handicapped on Day 2 and ended up with a squad of 20, the lowest among all the franchises.

They also invested in young pace bowlers in Mohit Sharma (Rs 2 crore) and Ishwar Pandey (Rs 1.5 crore) and experienced Australian Ben Hilfenhaus (Rs 1 crore).

Chennai’s smartest buys were West Indies leg-spinner Samuel Badree and New Zealand fast bowler Matt Henry, both of whom were bought for Rs 30 lakh each.

Delhi Daredevils:

Total players: 23

Total spent: Rs 60 crore

Delhi Daredevils was the only team with a full budget of Rs 60 crore, having not retained any players before the auction.

While they paid a massive Rs 12.5 crore to acquire Dinesh Karthik, they must be delighted to retain Kevin Pietersen for Rs nine crore after using the 'Right to Match' card. It turned out to be a smart move, as had they included him in the original retention list, he would have cost a lot more.

They also bid aggressively for India opener Murali Vijay, bagging him for Rs 5 crore, while the pace duo of Mohammed Shami and Nathan Coulter-Nile came for Rs 4.25 crore each.

South Africa batsman Quinton de Kock came in expensive, at Rs 3.5 crore, as compared to New Zealand’s Ross Taylor, who was unsold on Day 1 before Delhi got him for Rs 2 crore on the second day.

They also used the 'Right to Match' option to get back uncapped players -- Kedar Jadhav for Rs 2 crore and Shahbaz Nadeem for Rs 85 lakh.

Overall, they bought 23 players. They seem to have covered up all areas and look a very strong side unlike in the previous years.

Kings XI Punjab:

Total players: 23

Total spent: Rs 55.9 crore

Kings XI Punjab surprised many by deciding to retain little-known Punjab player Manan Vohra and David Miller ahead of the auction.

They then made some smart purchases at the auction, roping in 23 players, including seven overseas, and still finished with Rs 4.1 crore remaining in their kitty.

Their top three buys were all Australians -- Mitchell Johnson (Rs 6.5 crore), Glenn Maxwell (Rs 6 crore) and George Bailey (Rs 3.25 crore).

They also retained struggling former India opener Virender Sehwag for Rs 3.2 crore while paying a huge Rs 3 crore for Himachal Pradesh pacer Rishi Dhawan.

Shaun Marsh cost less than expected at Rs 2.2 crore, like Cheteshwar Pujara, who didn’t evoke much interest at the auction and was bought for Rs 1.9 crore.

They nearly missed out a frontline spinner before buying veteran Murali Kartik late on the second day for Rs 1 crore.

Wriddhiman Saha (Rs 2.2 crore), Beuran Hendricks (Rs 1.8 crore) and Gurkeerat Singh (Rs 1.3 crore) were some of the surprise high-profile signings.

Kolkata Knight Riders:

Total players: 21

Total spent: Rs 59 crore

Kolkata Knight Riders retained captain Gautam Gambhir and West Indies mystery spinner Sunil Narine ahead of the auction.

Their most expensive buy was veteran South African Jacques Kallis for Rs 5.5 crore after using the 'Right to Match' card.

India discard Robin Uthappa was another big-money signing at Rs 5 crore, while leg-spinner Piyush Chawla cost them Rs 4.25 crore.

Yusuf Pathan came in pretty cheap compared to the last auction, as he was bought for Rs 3.25 crore after KKR exercised the ‘Right to Match’ option.

They strengthened their bowling attack by purchasing Shakib Al Hasan, Morne Morkel and R Vinay Kumar for Rs 2.8 crore each.

Their two most smart buys though were West Indian Andre Russell and wicketkeeper Manvinder Bisla for Rs 60 lakh each.

Manish Pandey, Rs 1.7 crore, and Umesh Yadav, Rs 2.6 crore, were the other big signings. At the end of the day, their combination looks a bit lighter than some of the other teams.

Mumbai Indians:

Total players: 21

Total spent: Rs 59.95 crore

Mumbai Indians were another team that spent a major chunk of their auction budget in retaining five players from their previous squad.

Captain Rohit Sharma, who led Mumbai to the IPL and Champions League T20 titles last year, was retained along with all-rounder Kieron Pollard, batsman Ambati Rayudu, pacer Lasith Malinga and veteran spinner Harbhajan Singh.

Former Australia batsman Michael Hussey (Rs 5 crore) and New Zealand’s latest batting sensation Corey Anderson (Rs 4.5 crore) saved Mumbai in what was an otherwise disappointing auction for them.

They managed to bring back Zaheer Khan after a gap of few seasons for Rs 2.6 crore but Aditya Tare and Jasprit Bumrah were definitely overpriced at Rs 1.6 crore and Rs 1.2 crore respectively.

It was clear that Mumbai were confused in their picks as they bought as many four wicketkeepers in Tare, Ben Dunk, CM Gautam and Sushant Marathe for a sum of Rs 2.1 crore on wicketkeepers alone.

Rajasthan Royals

Total players: 25

Total spent: Rs 54.45 crore

Rahul Dravid was back to lead the Rajasthan Royals, this time though at the auction table. The 2009 champions made some pretty smart buys and also ended up saving Rs 5.55 crore in the end.

Shane Watson, who is expected to lead the side, will be one of their key players for the 2014 season. Australian James Faulkner has made great strides in the last year or so both with his batting and bowling, while Stuart Binny, Ajinkya Rahane and Sanju Samson are part of the young brigade who performed with great distinction for Rajasthan in the last two seasons.

Australia's latest batting sensation Steve Smith was their biggest purchase, but came in for a modest Rs 4 crore.

They managed to retain veteran T20 specialist Brad Hodge for Rs 2.4 crore while also paying a huge Rs 1.7 crore for experienced all-rounder Rajat Bhatia.

New Zealand’s talented all-rounder Tim Southee came in cheap at Rs 1.2 crore but Dhawal Kulkarni and Abhishek Nayar were on the expensive side at Rs 1.1 crore and Rs 1 crore respectively.

Their most smart buy was Kevon Cooper for Rs 30 lakh and Pravin Tambe for Rs 10 lakh as both of them performed quite well last season.

Royal Challengers Bangalore

Total players: 21

Total spent: Rs 60 crore

Royal Challengers Bangalore retained their three big players ahead of the auction in captain Virat Kohli, smashing West Indian Chris Gayle and South Africa’s batting ace AB de Villiers.

Yuvraj Singh was bought for Rs 14 crore to boost the already explosive batting line-up but the rest of the squad wears a thin look with not enough talent on the bench.

Australian pacer Mitchell Starc was bought for Rs 5 crore while all-rounder Albie Morkel was snatched from Chennai Super Kings for Rs 2.4 crore.

Their most experienced bowler is retired Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan but even he cost Rs 1 crore.

Varun Aaron, Ravi Rampaul and Ashok Dinda are the frontline pacers. It is clear that RCB are banking on their batting to do the trick this season.

Sunrisers Hyderabad

Total players: 24

Total spent: Rs 59 crore

Sunrisers Hyderabad retained captain Shikhar Dhawan and strike bowler Dale Steyn and made quite a few interesting buys at the auction.

David Warner, one of the best players to have in this format, was their most expensive purchase at Rs 5.5 crore. His Australian team mate Aaron Finch, who cost Rs 4 crore, is another useful T20 player.

Sunrisers Hyderabad invested heavily to get back their two frontline leg spinners, Amit Mishra and Karn Sharma, who cost Rs 4.75 crore and Rs 3.75 crore respectively.

They paid Rs 4.25 crore for India pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, while West Indian all-rounder Darren Sammy was retained for Rs 3.5 crore.

The struggling pace duo of Ishant Sharma and Irfan Pathan came for a sum of Rs 5 crore, while Karnataka batsman KL Rahul was rewarded for his impressive showing in domestic cricket with a Rs 1 crore price tag.

They also managed to sign the lone Zimbabwean player in the auction, snapping up wicketkeeper Brendan Taylor for Rs 30 lakh.

But the purchase of Srikkanth Anirudha for Rs 20 lakh did raise a few eye brows. It was not a surprise though considering that his father Krisnamachari Srikkanth was part of the bidding team for Sunrisers.