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Making his return to the IPL after a gap of two years, Pat Cummins was picked up by the Kolkata Knight Riders for a massive Rs 15.50 crore to become the the most expensive overseas player in the history of IPL.
Cummins broke the record held by Ben Stokes, who was bought by Rising Pune Supergiant for Rs 14.5 crore in the 2017 auction.
The Australian pacer also became the second most expensive player in IPL history. Yuvraj Singh continues to be the most expensive player at Rs 16 crore when he was picked up for erstwhile Delhi Daredevils in 2015.
Starting at a base price of Rs 2 crore, there was a ferocious bidding war between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Capitals. But after Delhi bowed out at Rs 15 crore, Kolkata Knight Riders made a surprise move to enter the bid at the last moment and eventually bag the service of the Australian pacer.
The world number one Test bowler in the world, Cummins has been doing well at the international level in the last three years after a frustrating seven-year period marred by a spate of injuries.
Apart from his good going in Tests, Cummins has been making all the right noises in T20s as well and recently made his comeback to the Australia side.
The 26-year-old’s T20I record is excellent with 32 wickets in 25 appearances at an enviable economy-rate of just 6.77.
He had a strong IPL campaign in 2017 with Delhi Daredevils in which he claimed 15 wickets in 12 matches. Prior to Delhi Daredevils, he was picked by Kolkata in 2014.
Till date, Cummins has taken 17 wickets in 16 IPL matches so far with an economy of over 8.
Cummins' compatriot, swashbuckling all-rounder Glenn Maxwell went to Kings XI Punjab for Rs 10.75 crore after. Another big buy was South African Chris Morris, who was sold for Rs 10 crore to Royal Challengers Bangalore.
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