IPL Auction: SRH buys Cummins for Rs 20.5 crore

Dec. 19 (SS) - Cummins led Australia to the World Test Championship title in June, followed it up by retaining the Ashes in England, and then beat India at home to win the ODI World Cup.

Australia captain Pat Cummins became the most expensive player ever in the IPL history as his price soared past the Rs 20 crore mark. Sunrisers Hyderabad signed Cummins for Rs 20.5 crore on Tuesday.

There was a bidding war between CSK and MI before RCB swooped in. Shortly after, SRH joined the tug of war.

RCB and SRH then engaged in an intense bidding war much to the amusement of those present in the room. SRH did not back away and eventually bagged Cummins.

The fast bowler has previously been a part of Delhi Capitals and Kolkata Knight Riders. KKR signed him for a then-record sum of Rs 15.5 crore in the 2020 auction. Cummins was released and bought back by the franchise two seasons later for nearly a million dollars (Rs 7.25 crore).

Cummins’ 14-ball half century, scored for KKR against Mumbai Indians in 2022, is the joint second-fastest fifty in IPL.

In 42 outings in IPL, Cummins has 45 wickets at an economy rate of 8.54 as well as 359 runs.

Cummins led Australia to the World Test Championship title in June, followed it up by retaining the Ashes in England, and then beat India at home to win the ODI World Cup.

Cummins is set to return to the IPL after pulling out of this year’s competition with Kolkata Knight Riders, citing a heavy workload that included an India Test tour, World Test Championship final, the Ashes and an ODI World Cup.

Cummins had said that 2024 IPL would come as ideal preparation for the T20 World Cup, set to start days after the IPL final.

“I feel like I haven’t played a heap of T20 cricket and in some ways I feel like I haven’t played my best T20 cricket for a little while,” he said.

SRH began the auction with Rs 34 crore in the bank but after signing Cummins, Travis Head and Wanindu Hasaranga, it was left with just Rs 5.2 crore.