JAIPUR, Dec 19: Unheralded architect-turned-cricketer Varun Chakravarthy late on Tuesday fetched a sensational bid of Rs 8.4 crore, more than 40 times his base price, before veteran Yuvraj Singh finally found a buyer at the IPL players� auction.
Chakravarthy, with a base price of Rs 20 lakh, went to Kings XI Punjab after a bidding war that also involved Delhi Capitals, Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals. KXIP, who had the maximum money going into the auction, also spent big on England all-rounder Sam Curran, buying him for Rs 7.2 crore, the most for an overseas player on Tuesday. Colin Ingram was the second-highest paid overseas player with Delhi Capitals shelling out Rs 6.4 crore for the South Africa wicket-keeper batsman.
Yuvraj fans must have also heaved a sigh of relief when the 37-year-old was bought by Mumbai Indians for his base price of Rs 1 crore after going unsold initially. �If you are wondering why this took time... We�ve just got back to senses! Welcome to Mumbai (Yuvraj),� tweeted Mumbai Indians.
Yuvraj got a last minute deal but his IPL fortunes have been declining rapidly. In 2015, he fetched a record Rs 16 crore deal with the Delhi franchise but was picked up by KXIP at his base of price of Rs 2 crore last season before the team released him.
Both uncapped and capped Indians were in demand at the auction. Medium pacer Jaydev Unadkat became a millionaire once again with a Rs 8.4 crore bid from Rajasthan Royals but the spotlight was firmly on Chakravarthy, the 27-year-old mystery spinner from Tamil Nadu who gave up a career as freelance architect to pursue cricket. � PTI
