IPL 2019: Highest Paid XI from the list of auctioned players

Less than 20 days remain for IPL 2019 to kickstart. Some teams have already begun with their practice sessions. No team wants to leave any stone unturned as they gear up for the 2-month long cricket extravaganza.

The IPL 2019 auction saw a total of 60 players being picked up by various franchises in a bid to get the balance in their team right. There were many big buys as a total of ₹107 crores was splurged by the franchises to procure the services of these players. Many surprise signings were made while some of the renowned players went unsold.

Each franchise of the IPL is given a budget of ₹82 crores to purchase or retain a total of 25 players.

In this article, we compile an IPL XI from the list of players that were auctioned ahead of IPL 2019. Due consideration has been given to the fact that there can be only 4 overseas players in each team's playing XI. The role of player (opener, middle order batsman, all-rounder, and bowler) has also been taken into consideration to form a well-rounded team.

In all, the IPL XI we have selected will cost ₹57.2 crores.

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Openers - Martin Guptill (₹1 crore), Colin Ingram (₹6.40 crores)

Martin Guptill

Many franchises do not gamble on the openers in their side and try their best to retain the existing ones. In all, there were only 10 batsmen bought at the 2019 IPL auctions. Of these, Colin Ingram, Joe Denly, Martin Guptill, Manan Vohra, and Ruturaj Gaikwad are opening batsmen.

Kiwi opener Martin Guptill and South African player Colin Ingram would be part of our auctioned XI.

After going unsold in the first round, Martin Guptill was roped in by Sunrisers Hyderabad for his base price of ₹1 crore during the second round of auction.

The New Zealand opener has a highly decorated career in limited overs cricket. Guptill has amassed a total of 2272 runs in 76 T20Is and is the 2nd highest run-getter in the format. He was recently overtaken by India's opener Rohit Sharma.

Guptill has an average of 33.91 and also a brilliant strike rate of 132.71 in T20Is. His two stints in the IPL, however, have been far less illustrious. Maybe that is the reason any franchise was reluctant to pick him up.

The lanky right-handed batsman played for Mumbai Indians in IPL 2016 and was with Kings XI Punjab in 2017. Overall, he has played 10 IPL matches in which he has amassed just 189 runs at a disappointing average of 21.0.

Sunrisers would be happy that they purchased Martin Guptill as he is in sublime form currently. He recently hit two cracking ODI centuries against Bangladesh at home.

The Auckland-born player also hit a century in a recent first class match against Northern Districts. If he is able to perform well in the IPL, then it would prove to be a bargain buy for the Hyderabad-based franchise.

Colin Ingram

Port Elizabeth-born Colin Ingram would be the choice for the second opener in our XI. The Delhi Capitals bought him for a whopping ₹6.40 crores. Ingram's base price was ₹2 crores and he became the 4th most expensive buy at the auction.

The South African batsman is currently playing for the Karachi Kings in the Pakistan Super League. He hit a blistering 127 off 59 deliveries against the Quetta Gladiators in a recent match. Ingram averages over 30 and has a strike rate of a staggering 139.81 in T20s. He can prove to be a vital cog for the Delhi-based franchise in the upcoming season of IPL.

Honourable Mentions: Joe Denly (₹1 crore), Wriddhiman Saha (₹1.2 crores)

English batsman Joe Denly was purchased by Kolkata Knight Riders for a sum of ₹ 1 crore. The Canterbury-born player also has the ability to bowl legbreaks and has been in decent form in the recent past, making him our honourable mention in the list of opening batsman.

Wriddhiman Saha could be another viable option in the auctioned XI. The wicketkeeper-batsman has found good form with the bat. He plays for Bengal in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and even smashed a superb 129 off 62 deliveries against Arunachal Pradesh recently.

Middle Order Batsmen - Hanuma Vihari (₹2 crores), Shimron Hetmyer (₹4.20 crores)

Hanuma Vihari

Hanuma Vihari will be the batsman coming in at one down in our auctioned XI. The Andhra Pradesh-born player had a base price of ₹50 lakhs and was eventually picked up by Delhi Capitals for ₹2 crores during the 2019 IPL auctions.

25-year-old Vihari has shown a lot of promise in the past. He has even played 4 Tests for Team India. The youngster has the ability to bowl offbreaks as well and can prove to be a valuable addition for any side he plays for. The batting all-rounder is currently captaining Andhra in the ongoing Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

Shimron Hetmyer

Royal Challengers bought Shimron Hetmyer for a whopping ₹4.20 crores during the 2019 IPL auction. His base price was ₹50 lakhs as well. ICC named the top-order Windies batsman one of the five breakout stars of 2018.

The 22-year-old scored a spectacular century in an ODI against England recently. Hetmyer has a strike rate of 141.97 in the 22 T20s he has played thus far. He would prove to be another valuable addition in the Highest Paid IPL XI from the list of auctioned players.

Wicketkeeper - Prabhsimran Singh (₹4.80 crores)

Prabhsimran Singh

Imagine bagging ₹4.8 crores when you are 18 years old. Well, young wicketkeeper-batsman Prabhsimran Singh managed exactly this when he was purchased by the Punjab-based franchise of IPL for the massive amount of rupees 4.8 crores. It was 24 times his base price of ₹20 lakhs.

The youngster certainly became one of the surprise crorepatis during the auctions.

In fact, Prabhsimran's cousin Anmolpreet, just 20 years of age and a top-order batsman, bagged ₹80 lakhs and was picked up by Mumbai Indians.

Prabhsimran had caught the eye of selectors when he had smashed 298 runs for Patiala during the Punjab U-23 district tournament. The youngster, who is considered a prodigy by his brother Anmolpreet, is currently playing for Punjab in the 2018–19 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He is also a versatile batsman and can be used as an opener as well as a middle-order batsman.

All-rounders - Varun Chakravarthy (₹8.4 crores), Sam Curran (₹7.20 crores), Axar Patel (₹5 crores)

Varun

Varun Chakravarthy became an overnight sensation after becoming the (joint) most expensive player to be purchased during the 2019 IPL auctions. The Karnataka-born player was purchased by Kings XI Punjab for ₹8.4 crores -- a mind-boggling 42 times his base price of ₹20 lakhs.

The bowling all-rounder is famous for his variations. The mystery spinner represents Tamil Nadu in First Class and List A cricket. He displayed his skills during the TNPL and also set the 2018 Vijay Hazare Trophy ablaze. Varun became the second-highest wicket-taker of the Vijay Hazare Trophy as he made 22 scalps in 9 matches at an economy rate of 4.23.

The youngster is quick through the air and will prove to be a huge asset in our auctioned XI for his lethal variations.

Sam Curran

Sam Curran became the most expensive overseas player at the 2019 IPL auctions as he was picked up by Kings XI Punjab for a handsome sum of ₹7.20 crores. 20-year-old Curran has played 9 Tests and 2 ODIs for England but is yet to play a T20I match.

The bowling all-rounder shot to fame for his swing bowling. He is also an ambitious batsman and has all the prerequisites of going on to become a special cricketer. The Northampton-born player is claimed as the next big all-rounder by many cricket experts. It will be interesting to see if he is able to live up to the high expectations in his inaugural IPL.

Axar Patel

Axar Patel was released by the Kings XI Punjab after a dismal outing in the previous IPL. The Gujarat-born player played 9 matches and amassed just 80 runs, besides picking up 3 wickets. Axar Patel was picked up by Delhi Capitals for ₹5 crores.

He is currently playing for Gujarat in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and has played a few good cameos with the bat, besides clinching 3 wickets in 6 matches. The slow left-arm orthodox bowler will be a valuable addition to the IPL XI from the list of auctioned players.

Honourable Mentions - Carlos Brathwaite (₹5 crores), Shivam Dube (₹5 crores)

Also Read: IPL history: 5 batsmen with the most sixes in the tournament

Bowlers - Jaydev Unadkat (₹8.4 crores), Mohit Sharma (₹5 crores), Mohammad Shami (₹4.80 crores)

Jaydev

Jaydev Unadkat had fetched a mind-boggling ₹11.5 crores in the auction for IPL 2018, making him the most expensive Indian buy. The Indian speedster was again picked up by the Rajasthan Royals, albeit this time around he fetched ₹8.4 crores. Regardless, he became the (joint) most expensive player to be sold at the auction.

The Porbandar-born player clinched 11 wickets in the 15 matches he played last season. He plays for domestic cricket for Saurashtra. The left-arm pacer is in terrific form and has made 12 scalps in 6 matches of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

Mohit Sharma

Mohit Sharma fetched a staggering amount of ₹5 crores at the auctions. The Ballabhgarh-born bowler makes a return to Chennai Super Kings after being with the Kings XI Punjab from 2016 to 2018.

The right-arm bowler has given some impressive performances for Haryana in first-class cricket and he will be one of the players to watch out for in IPL 2019.

Mohammed Shami has represented Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Daredevils in the past and will now be seen in Kings XI Punjab colours in IPL 2019.

The Amroha-born player has been in excellent form for the Men in Blue. He was highly impressive in the 4 ODIs he played against New Zealand recently. Shami clinched 9 wickets in those 4 matches. Although his track record isn't something to boast of in the IPL, a stellar show can be expected from him in the upcoming IPL.

Honourable Mentions - Lasith Malinga (₹2 crores), Ishant Sharma (₹1.10 crores), Oshane Thomas (₹1.10 crores)

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How do you think the Highest Paid XI from the list of auctioned players would fare in the IPL? (assuming that such a team was possible)