Nine players were removed on Saturday from the final auction list, which raised questions about the decision as the organizer did not provide any reasons or explanations, reports the Daily Sun.
More than a thousand cricketers had registered for the Indian Premier League (IPL) auction, from which an initial shortlist of 350 players was announced last week. The list was later expanded to 359 with the inclusion of nine additional names.
Of the players omitted, six are Indian, and three are overseas cricketers. All six Indian players: Mani Sarkar, Mura Singh, Chama Milind, KL Sreejit, Swastik Chikara, Rahul Raj Namala, and Virat Singh, had a base price of INR30 lakh. Among the overseas players, Malaysia’s Virandeep Singh also had a base price of INR30 lakh.
Virandeep Singh, an experienced all-rounder, has featured in 110 international matches. In T20 cricket, he has scored more than 3,000 runs and claimed 105 wickets, making his exclusion particularly notable.
Meanwhile, South African fast bowler Ethan Bosch and Australian all-rounder Chris Green, both of whom had a base price of INR75 lakh, were also dropped from the final list.
Despite being included in the shortlist of more than 350 players, no official explanation has been provided by the IPL authorities regarding the removal of these nine cricketers. The lack of clarification has led to speculation among fans and observers.
The IPL mini auction is scheduled to be held on 16 December in Abu Dhabi, where franchises will look to strengthen their squads ahead of the upcoming season.
Bd-Pratidin English/ AM
