IPL history: 12 most expensive players of last 12 IPL auctions and how they performed

#3 IPL 2010 - Shane Bond (Kolkata Knight Riders) and Kieron Pollard (Mumbai Indians) - ₹4.8 crores (approx) each

Kieron Pollard

Shane Bond played 8 matches for the Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2010. The legendary Kiwi speedster made an impact as clinched 9 wickets at a decent economy rate of 7.22. IPL 2009 was Bond's only appearance in the IPL. His best figures of the season - 2/24 - came in the match against Mumbai Indians. The dashing right arm pacer announced his retirement from all forms of cricket on 13 May 2010.

Mumbai Indians paid an extravagant ₹4.8 crores for West Indies all-rounder Kieron Pollard. The Trinidad and Tobago-born player was highly impressive in his debut season. He was impressed with both bat and ball.

Pollard made 15 scalps in 14 matches at a strike rate of 14.80 and an economy rate of 7.40. The lanky power hitter also scored a total of 273 at an explosive strike rate of 185.71 in IPL 2010. Polly has been a regular feature of Mumbai Indians ever since and was also retained by the franchise for ₹5.4 crores ahead of IPL 2020.

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#4 IPL 2011 - Gautam Gambhir (Kolkata Knight Riders) - ₹14.9 crores

Gautam Gambhir

Kolkata Knight Riders paid a mind-boggling ₹14.9 crores to procure the services of Gautam Gambhir. The star Indian opener was exceptional in the 2008 edition but had a forgettable 2009 edition. He did a decent job in IPL 2010 and there were high expectations from the Delhi-born player in IPL 2011.

Gambhir scored 378 runs in 15 matches at an average of 34.36 and a strike rate of 119.24. He led the team to the Playoff stage and became an instrumental figure in the KKR side in the coming years, helping them to two titles in the 2012 and 2014 editions of the IPL.

The left-handed batsman is the 10th highest run-getter in the IPL if we are to look at the all-time stats. Gauti scored a commendable 4217 runs in his entire IPL career.