Hello and a very good morning to you on this lovely Tuesday Morning (in India!). Welcome to the first IPL Player Draft. In the next hour or so, the two new IPL sides - Pune and Rajkot - will have the opportunity to build the core of their teams for the next couple of seasons. 50 Players from the two suspended franchises - Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals - are part of this draft and the two new franchise will be able to pick upto five players from the lot.
IPL 2016 DRAFT
IPL Draft - Dhoni goes to Pune, Rajkot pick Raina
Shane Watson goes unsold in the player draft © Cricbuzz
The draft is scheduled to begin at 11.30 IST. But before we go there. Here's a quick look at the rules and regulations!
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Pune have the first choice in the draft, having bid the lowest amount in the bid
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The two franchises will then alternate to pick up to a maximum of 5 players each from the draft pool
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The two teams have a cap of 66 crore INR to spend in the draft and the subsequent auction.
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The teams will be deducted 12.5 crore for the first pick with the subsequent picks costing 9.5, 7.5, 5.5 and 4 crores respectively
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Uncapped players will cost 4 crore each
Remember: These values are only to put a cap on the teams' spending. This is not a reflection on the player's fee. Player contracts with existing teams will transfer over to the new sides.
MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Faf du Plessis, Brendon McCullum, Shane Watson, Steven Smith and James Faulkner.
MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Faf du Plessis, Brendon McCullum, Shane Watson, Steven Smith and James Faulkner.
These are some of the big names. But the teams could spring a surprise for going for another unheralded player. We'll never know.Here's the full list.
While you eagerly await the draft process to start - here's a mock draft. Do you see the actual draft go this way? Let us know. If you were a team owner now. What would your strategy be? Tweet your opinions @kaushik_cb. We'll feature a collection of the best in our blog.
Common logic suggests MS Dhoni would be the first pick in the draft. Why you ask? The reason is multi fold - Despite his waning powers, Dhoni remains amongst the most destructive finishers in the game. His captaincy credentials are unparalleled. But most importantly, for franchises looking to break even within a stringent two-year deal, MS Dhoni - the brand can certainly help draw the big bucks!
But here's the catch - Suresh Raina, Shane Watson, Dwayne Bravo and Brendon McCullum are IPL powerhouses. Their selection over Dhoni can make cricketing sense. But will the teams play that gamble? Especially when they are in the league for just two years.
Eight seasons of IPL, Over 400 runs in seven of them. Highest run-getter in the tournament's history. Not a single match missed for CSK. Sixes count only next to Chris Gayle, Age on his side. Handy off-spin - Enough reasons for Suresh Raina to even pip Dhoni to become the first pick. Wouldn't you agree?
Suresh Raina is the leading run-getter in the tournament's eight-year history. ©Reuters
Pune - MS Dhoni
Rajkot - Suresh Raina
Pune - Ajinkya Rahane
Rajkot - Ravindra Jadeja
Pune - Ravichandran Ashwin
Rajkot - Brendon McCullum (Overseas)
Pune - Steve Smith (Overseas)
Rajkot - James Faulkner (Overseas)
Pune - Faf du Plessis (Overseas)
Rajkot - Dwayne Bravo (Overseas)
means Virat Kohli for & Harbhajan Singh for are now the only players to appear for one franshise all 8 seasons!
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