The IPL 2024 Auction will see some interesting bids as the 10 teams seek to finalise their squads months ahead of the 17th edition of the Indian Premier League. Some of cricket’s most decorated stars will be up for grabs in the mini-auction to be held in Dubai on December 19 and you can expect some fireworks inside the auction room.
The likes of Travis Head, Mitchell Starc, Steve Smith and Shahrukh Khan have been listed in the auction list. Rachin Ravindra, the young New Zealand star, who had such a massive impact recently, will also undoubtedly attract a lot of attention from the franchises.
As many as 333 players will be expected to go under the hammer. However, only 77 slots are available while 30 of these are reserved for foreign players.
Tom Moody, former Australian cricketer and ex coach of the Sunrisers Hyderabad, made some bold predictions ahead of the much-awaited IPL auctions. Moody said Australia star Steve Smith could be unsold and he backed Mitchell Starc to break the records for highest bids.
“Steve Smith will be unsold and Mitchell Starc will break the all-time record for IPL auctions which is currently held by Sam Curran for Rs 18.5 crore. I think he will go beyond that,” Moody told ESPN Cricinfo.
Steve Smith, regarded as the greatest Test batter in the modern era, has never been an IPL hit. Even though he has tried to remodel his game to suit the high-paced demands of the shortest format, he is unlikely to find any takers.
Meanwhile, Moody might have ground for believing in Starc’s potential to set a new record at the IPL 2024 auction. Starc was listless in the 2023 Cricket World Cup until the semi-finals where he destroyed the New Zealand top-order and then he went on to have a huge impact in the final against India.
Tom Moody also said Shahrukh Khan could be snapped up by Chennai Super Kings, who won their fifth IPL title after beating Gujarat Titans in a nail-biter earlier this year. “Shahrukh Khan, I think, will be picked by CSK and it won’t be far from what he had been released for which was around Rs 9 crore,” he said.
