A total of 590 cricketers are set to go under the hammer in the Indian Premier Leaguer (IPL) mega auction to be held in Bengaluru on February 12 and 13.
A total of 228 capped players, 355 uncapped players and seven from Associate Nations are in the fray.
Thirteen Kerala players will be up for grabs. S Sreesanth, Sachin Baby, Vishnu Vinod, S Midhun, M D Nidheesh, Mohammed Azharuddeen, Rohan S Kunnummal, Sijomon Joseph, Basil Thampi, Shoun Roger, K M Asif, and outstation professionals Robin Uthappa and Jalaj Saxena made it to the final list. Star Kerala batter Sanju Samson was retained as captain by Rajasthan Royals (RR) for a whopping Rs 14 crore.
S Sreesanth
Veteran pacer Sreesanth, who was overlooked for the auction last year, has a base price of Rs 50 lakh. Sreesanth, who will turn 39 on Sunday, has featured in 44 IPL matches for Kings XI Punjab, Kochi Tuskers Kerala and RR from 2008-13 before being slapped with a ban for his alleged involvement in the 2013 IPL spot-fixing scam. It will be interesting to see whether there are any takes for the seamer after last year's snub.
Robin Uthappa
Veteran batter Uthappa has the highest base price of Rs 2 crore among Kerala players. The 36-year-old has played 193 IPL matches for Mumbai Indians (MI), Pune Warriors India, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), RR and Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
Mohammed Azharuddeen
Wicketkeeper-batter Azharuddeen is yet to feature in the IPL despite being part of the RCB squad last season. The 28-year-old has a base price of Rs 20 lakh.
Vishnu Vinod
Explosive wicketkeeper-batsman Vishnu has a base price of Rs 20 lakh. The 28-year-old has played three matches for RCB. Vishnu did not get a chance to showcase his skills though he was a member of the Delhi Capitals (DC) squad in IPL 2021.
K M Asif
Pacer Asif has featured in three matches for CSK. He has a base price of Rs 20 lakh. The 28-year-old right-arm fast bowler played one match for CSK in the last edition.
Basil Thampi
Another pacer Basil has a base price of Rs 30 lakh. The 28-year-old has played 20 IPL matches for Gujarat Lions and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). He did not get a single game for SRH last season.
Sachin Baby
Kerala Ranji captain Sachin has a base price of Rs 20 lakh. The 33-year-old left-handed batter has played 19 IPL games and has been part of RCB, RR and SRH squads in the past.
S Midhun
Leggie Midhun too has a base price of Rs 20 lakh. The 27-year-old has played one match for RR.
Jalaj Saxena
Saxena has a base price of Rs 30 lakh. The 35-year-old has played just one IPL game - for Punjab Kings last season - despite being part of MI, RCB and DC squads in the past.
Rohan Kunnummal
Young batter Rohan has a base price of Rs 20 lakh. He's no prior IPL experience.
M D Nidheesh
Pacer Nidheesh has a base price of Rs 20 lakh. The 30-year-old has yet to play an IPL match though he was part of the MI squad in 2018.
Shoun Roger
Off-spinning all-rounder Shoun is also in the fray. The 19-year-old has a base price of Rs 20 lakh.
Sijomon Joseph
Another all-rounder Sijomon completes the list of Kerala players. The 24-year-old has a base price of Rs 20 lakh. Sijo is a steady left-arm spinner and has improved his batting as demonstrated in the Vijay Hazare Trophy one-day championship.
