IPL 2018 Auction: 5 players with unexpectedly high base prices

The Indian Premier League is getting bigger and better with every passing year. Entering into its second decade, the upcoming season of the tournament promises to be more exciting than ever. With the return of the two suspended teams, Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals, and with almost all the star players in the auction pool, the excitement among the cricket fans is touching a new high.

The purse of the teams has increased to Rs 80 crore this year, up from Rs. 66 crore last year. With great money in hand comes greater freedom for the franchises who can indulge in more fierce bidding wars.

Each and every IPL fan is waiting for an exciting weekend ahead which will see some of the greatest players of the game going under the hammer. Though the players do not have a say in the IPL auction's proceedings, the one thing they can decide is their base price.

With the auction list of the players released last week, here are some players who I think have asked too much for themselves.

#5 Ravi Bopara

Base price: Rs. 1.5 crore

Ravi Bopara, the English all-rounder, has faded away with time. He last played an international match for England in March 2014 and has been out of the team since then.

Playing in the IPL he has an average record, scoring 531 runs in 24 matches at an average of 29.50 while taking 11 wickets. He last played for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 2015 edition of the tournament, where he managed to score just 145 runs from 9 outings and took 6 wickets.

He was released by the franchise ahead of the IPL auction 2016 and went unsold in the auction after he set his base price at Rs. 1 crore. He didn't play in the IPL in the last two seasons.

With a price of Rs. 1.5 crore and after having a string of poor performances in the previous year, it looks like he will go unsold at the auction this year.

#4 Jason Holder

Base Price: Rs. 1.5 crore

The tall West Indies all-rounder has base priced himself at Rs. 1.5 crore. Jason Holder was sold to Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL auction 2016 at his then base price of Rs. 50 lakh. He played 4 matches for the franchise and could manage to score just 22 runs and take 2 wickets.

Owing to his poor performance he was later released by the Kolkata team ahead of the IPL auction 2017. The West Indian missed out on an IPL contract last year after he went unsold. His base price of Rs 1.5 crore was one of the biggest reasons for this.

Going by the auction stats and his current form playing for West Indies, it looks like he will go unsold this year too.

#3 Harry Gurney

Base price: Rs. 1.5 crore

The England medium pacer has set an astonishing base price for himself. Priced at Rs. 1.5 crore, he has put himself in the second best price bracket in the auction. Harry Gurney has not played in IPL before and is thus relatively unknown to the fans and the franchises.

Gurney plays for Nottinghamshire in county cricket and has an average record in T20s, taking 114 wickets in 99 matches at an economy of 7.78. He has played in a handful of matches for England in the international where he has not enjoyed much success.

In 10 ODIs that he has played for England, Gurney has taken 11 wickets.

Rs. 1.5 crore is too much for an opening bid for a player of his caliber. Even players of the likes of Lasith Malinga and Mustafizur Rahman have set a base price of Rs. 1 crore for themselves.

#2 James Faulkner

Base Price: Rs. 2 crore

James Faulkner, the hero of the 2015 World Cup Final, has based priced himself at Rs. 2 crore. Owing to his continuous poor performances in the last year, he has been out of Australia's limited overs' squad.

Faulkner first came to the limelight in the 2013 edition of the IPL where he clinched 28 wickets in 16 matches at an impressive economy of 6.75. In the last season, playing for Gujarat Lions, Faulkner got just 6 wickets in 8 matches at a poor economy of 9.79.

It will be interesting to see whether Rajasthan Royals will be interested in getting him back using their Right to Match card.

#1 Angelo Mathews

Base Price: Rs. 2 crore

The Sri Lanka all-rounder has set his base price at the maximum. Angelo Mathews has been out of form in limited overs cricket for close to 6 months now.

In the last season, he played for Delhi Daredevils where he managed to score just 31 runs in 3 matches and did not get any wickets.

His overall record in the IPL is below par. Mathews has played in 49 IPL matches in which he has scored 724 runs at an average of 23.35. Also, he has only 27 wickets under his belt from as many matches.

Citing his performance in the previous seasons of the IPL and his current form, Rs. 2 crore is too much to ask for. His ongoing hamstring injury is another concern that might be a factor the franchises may be considering before bidding for him.