Action at the IPL Auction -- 2009

The IPL 2009 season kicked off with the much awaited auction at Goa where Bollywood beauties rubbed shoulders (not literally though) with hard-nosed businessmen.Though there plastic smiles for the flashbulbs, the bidding in some cases was really close.Unlike in the first edition, this time all the teams were not too liberal with their purse-strings and seemed to have come to the auction with clearly though out strategies. The 5 most costliest players were:

• Kevin Pietersen : US$ 1,550,000 -- Bangalore Royal Challengers
• Andrew Flintoff : US $1,550,000 -- Chennai Superkings
• Jean Paul Duminy : US$ 950,000 --Mumbai Indians
• Tyron Henderson : US $ 650,000 -- Rajasthan Royals
• Mashrafe Mortaza : US $ 600,000 -- Kolkata Knightriders

Absolutely no flaw in Vijay Mallya's strategy to get Pietersen at whatever be the price. Bangalore Royal Challengers desperately needed a big-hitter who can turn matches around on his own. The side which was widely regarded last season as a team fit for Test cricket but not for T20. With batsmen like Rahul Dravid, Jacques Kallis, Shivnarine Chanderpaul & Wasim Jaffer, it indeed looked a Test side. Pietrersen's inclusion gives the team undoubted strike power PLUS he is a great crowd-puller PLUS he can take over the captaincy as is expected, given Dravid's below-par performance at the helm.The ostensible reason which could be cited is Dravid's possible 'leave of absence' to be by the side of his wife welcoming their second child. With US $ 1.55 million being his price, Pietersen surely will be one of the 4 foreign players who will be in the Royal Challengers' playing eleven in all matches, unless he has national duties or is hit by injuries (God forbid).

If Mallya's purchase is understandable, totally inexplicable is why N.Srinivasan and his Chennai Superkings spent US $ 1.55 million on all-rounder, Andrew Flintoff. He is a class act, no questions about it and any team would like to have him. The Superkings however have a problem of plenty. Remember only 4 foreigners can be in the playing eleven for any match ! The Chennai team has Mathew Hayden, Michael Hussey,Stephen Fleming, two class all-rounders who did well last season-- Albie Morkel & Jacob Oram apart from the bowlers Makhaya Ntini, Muthiah Muralitharan, Thilan Thushara and now we have Mr.Flintoff. How will they fit Flintoff into the playing eleven in every match is the question.Given his high cost, he will be expected to play as much as possible and that will be the test for Dhoni and his wise men--who will sit out?

Jean-Paul Duminy is certainly in rip-roaring form as the series in Australia showed and his fielding is a huge bonus. However, one swallow does not a summer make and by and large he is an unknown commodity and his inexperience of Indian conditions will go against him. Appears Tendulkar plumped for him and Nita Ambani obliged leaving even Duminy shocked at his own value of US $ 950,000.We have to wait and watch to see if Tendulkar's hunch turns out to be right or not.

The magician Shane Warne, who moulded Rajasthan Royals into such a fine unit that they went all the way to be champions in 2008, has pulled out a new trick from his bag.Little known South African all-rounder, Tyron Henderson. At 34 years he is neither a promising youngster nor a internationally acclaimed star. A bowling all-rounder, he has shown with the bat for Middlesex and a few T20 sides in South Africa.No great performance at the international level. Will Warne's Midas Touch work on Henderson? Shane Watson too was not a great performer at the international level, but what a season he had for Rajathan Royals in 2008, both with the bat and the ball! Henderson is expected to fit into Watson's shoes given the fact that Watson may miss a greater part of IPL 2009 (if not totally) due to injury.

The biggest, biggest surprise of all--Mashrafe Mortaza snapped up by the Knightriders for a whopping US $ 600,000 which left everyone gasping.No doubt, Mortaza has improved by leaps and bounds and is a much more complete bowler now.He also takes his batting quite seriously. But is he worth the high price? Possibly something more than cricket--Sharukh Khan's shrewd business-sense maybe.With a Bangladeshi in their ranks, the Knightriders brand could catch up big time in neighbouring Bangladesh. If and when IPL goes international, possibly next season, the Knightriders could play matches in Dhaka or Chittagong in front of huge crowds apart from the selling the team souvenirs and other branded stuff.

Exciting days ahead in April and May! Recession be damned!

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust

If the General Elections don't get you, IPL Must.