As many as seven cricketers, including Indian pacer Ishant Sharma, have their base price as Rs.2 crore in the Indian Premier League (IPL) players' auction to be held on February 20 in Bengaluru, it was announced on Tuesday. A total of 351 players will go under the hammer.
Others in the highest base price bracket are Englishmen Ben Stokes, Eoin Morgan and Chris Woakes; Australian fast bowlers Mitchell Johnson and Pat Cummins; and Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews, IPL's website said.
A maximum of 76 players, including 28 overseas, can be bought at the auction.
Stokes, Morgan and Woakes were crucial members of the English team which lost the 2016 World Twenty20 final to the West Indies.
Mathews featured in Kolkata Knight riders, now-disbanded Pune Warriors India and Delhi Daredevils in the history of IPL. While playing Pune and Delhi, the all-rounder had been auctioned for more than Rs.5 crore.
It will be interesting to see how the franchisees react when the name of Johnson will come. The left-armer has retired from international cricket and even though, he has enough IPL experience, Rs.2 crore is seen as too high.
Ishant, who played for Rising Pune Supergiants, will also look to prove that he can be good enough in the shorter formats as well.
Among the players, who are in the Rs.1.5 crore bracket, New Zealand pacer Trent Boult, English wicketkeeper-batsman Jonny Bairstow and West Indian all-rounder Jason Holder can be interesting picks for the franchises.
New Zealand all-rounder Corey Anderson, English bowling all-rounder Chris Joran and Irfan Pathan will also be on focus.