IPL 2024 Auction: Seven cricketers who could fetch highest bids

Less than 10 days since the ODI World Cup final in Ahmedabad that ended in heartbreak for Team India and their fans, the ficus now shifts towards the 2024 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The deadline for player retention and releases ahead of IPL 2024 was on Sunday (26 November), and in less than a month, the IPL 2024 player auction  takes place in Dubai. The mini-auction is scheduled for 19 December and it will be for the first time the auction takes place outside India.

Over the years, the IPL auction has witnessed several stars who have gone onto fetch for big money. Sam Curran (Rs 18.50 crore) had become the most expensive IPL player in history when he was acquired by Punjab Kings (PBKS) in last year’s auction. The same yMumbai Indians (MI) bought the services of Cameron Green for Rs 17.50 crore, while Chennai Super Kings (CSK) got in Ben Stokes for Rs 16.25 crore.

The Cricket World Cup that ended on 19 November produced a number of up and coming stars, who have showed promise with their stellar displays. They could go for a whopping amount in the IPL player auction, and so could a couple of established players too. Let’s now take a look at the players who could fetch a lot of money:

Rachin Ravindra

Rachin Ravindra was one of the standout performers in the ODI World Cup. The New Zealand batter made a great impact right from the start of the tournament, and maintained consistency throughout.

The 24-year-old amassed 578 runs from 10 matches in he World Cup, including three centuries and two fifties, making him New Zealand’s highest run-getter in the tournament.

Ravindra announced himself to the big stage with an unbeaten 96-ball 123 in the World Cup opener against England, and would go onto slam valiant centuries against Australia and Pakistan to make it a tournament to remember for him.

Rachin Ravindra’s immaculate shot selections and the fearless way of taking on the opposition makes him a worthy candidate to go for a huge amount in the IPL 2024 player auction.

Travis Head

Australia’s swashbuckling opener Travis Head wasn’t even part of the squad during the first half of the World Cup. Head had suffered a hand injury during an ODI against South Africa in September, and was ruled out of the first half of the World Cup league stage.

Head, however, went onto make a strong comeback in the game against New Zealand in Dharamsala. That was his first game back from the injury, and Head would go onto amass 109 off just 67 balls, reaching his century in 59 deliveries.

Head would then go onto play which is arguably his most iconic and important knock of his career, a title-winning century of 137 in the World Cup final against India in Ahmedabad. With Australia down at 47/3 at one stage while chasing 241, Head would showcase resilience in his knock as he and Marnus Labuschagne (58*) would go onto win Australia’s sixth World Cup.

Teams could be in high demand for a player like Head, who has certainly impressed many with his batting and could be one of the big buys in IPL 2024 auction.

Gerald Coetzee

South Africa’s Gerald Coetzee is just 23 years old but has shown a lot of promise on the big stage. In the ODI World Cup, Coetzee, a right arm pacer, finished with 20 wickets from four matches, with best figures of 4/44 against Afghanistan.

Coetzee is someone who can bowl at speeds of more than 140 kph and can also be an effective death bowler. Teams like Mumbai Indians, who are in need of pacers, could go for Coetzee who could be in huge demand come the IPL 2024 auction.

Azmatullah Omarzai

Afghanistan showcased immense potential in the World Cup, so much so that, they were one of the major semi-final contenders at one stage. All-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai is one such player who impressed for them.

Omarzai would go onto score 353 runs from nine matches, including three fifties, against India, Sri Lanka and South Africa.

Omarzai’s proactive knock of 73 off 63 deliveries against Sri Lanka was the highlight of Afghanistan’s batting as the Afghans ended up winning by seven wickets, whereas he followed that up with an unbeaten 97 against South Africa three matches later, in a pressure situation.

His ability to handle pressure situations makes him a worthy option and some franchises could be set to spend a big amount on the 23-year-old in the IPL auction.

Dilshan Madushanka

Sri Lanka may have endured a forgettable World Cup campaign, but one of their brightest prospects with the ball was Dilshan Madushanka. Madushanka scalped 21 wickets in the World Cup and ended up as the  tournament’s third highest wicket taker.

He is effective with the new ball, having taken nine wickets in the first powerplay during the World Cup, at an economy rate of 5.13.

Against India, Madushanka registered his best figures of 5/80 sand was also effective against Australia with figures of 3/48.

Madushanka has almost everything in him that some IPL franchises could be eyeing. He is a left-arm pacer who can swing the ball in the early phases of a game, and takes wickets at will.

Mitchell Starc

Australia pacer Mitchell Starc has not played the IPL since 2015, when he turned up for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). In September this year though, Starc seemed to confirm that he was “definitely” heading back to the IPL player auction for the 2024 season.

While his performance in the World Cup was pretty ordinary with 16 wickets from 10 games, the IPL is a different ball game altogether. Franchises could look to use the experience of a player like Starc, who could be helpful in assisting young and budding pacers in the squad.

Wanindu Hasaranga

Wanindu Hasaranga was one of the surprising releases ahead of the IPL 2024 auction. Hasaranga has plied trade for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) since 2021, where he picked up 35 wickets from 26 games.

The Sri Lankan finished with 26 wickets from 16 games in IPL 2022, finishing as the second-highest wicket-taker, but in IPL 2023, Hasaranga had a rather below-par IPL with nine wickets from eight matches.

Despite that, Hasaranga still provides a valuable option for teams looking at wrist spinners. He is a proven match-winner with the ball and his exploits could come in handy during game-changing moments.

Hasaranga did sustain a hamstring injury in September that forced him to miss the World Cup, but come IPL 2024 that will be a thing of the past, and franchises would want to look as Hasaranga as a long-term option as well.