How much will Mitchell Starc earn per delivery if he plays all league games in IPL 2024?

Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc created history by becoming the most expensive player to be purchased at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 auction. The seasoned left-arm pacer was bought by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for a whopping sum of ₹24.75 crore.

The pacer, however, has had a horrendous start to IPL 2024. He registered figures of 0/53 from four overs against SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) and 0/47 in his four-over quota against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).

Starc, 33, is one of the top bowlers in international cricket across formats. He was part of Australia’s 2023 ODI World Cup triumph in India and played a key role with the ball in the semi-final as well as the final.

The Aussie pacer entered the IPL auction at a base price of ₹2 crore. And while he was expected to get high bids at the auction in Dubai, not many would have predicted him to go past the ₹24 crore mark. KKR will hope that their investment in Starc pays off well else they will end up paying a heavy price for their record acquisition.

Now, if we assume that Starc plays all 14 matches for Kolkata Knight Riders in the league stage of IPL 2024 and completes his quota of four overs in each game, he will end up bowling 336 legal deliveries. If we calculate his per delivery cost to KKR in the league stage in this scenario, it comes to approximately ₹7.36 lakh.

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“Nothing that I could've ever imagined” - Mitchell Starc reacts to record-breaking pay

Speaking after being picked up for a humungous sum by KKR at the IPL 2024 auction, Starc admitted that the end amount was not something he was expecting. He, however, stated that he is extremely thrilled to be part of the Kolkata-based franchise.

"I'm not sure any words would do it justice, really. Alyssa [Starc’s wife] was over there with the Australian team at the minute, so her coverage was slightly ahead of mine here in Australia. So she sort of saw the numbers before I did, so I was getting the updates through her. But, yeah, a fair bit of shock, and certainly excitement with how it was all unfolding. But nothing that I could've ever imagined. Thoroughly thrilled to be joining KKR," the left-arm pacer told Star Sports.

Starc last featured in the IPL in 2015 when he represented the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). In 27 matches in the T20 league, he has claimed 34 wickets at an average of 20.38 and an economy rate of 7.17.