Most expensive players in IPL 2024 & major squad changes

Last Updated on 2 days by Charbel Coorey

Cricket News: A look at the most expensive players in the upcoming 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) season + major squad changes

The 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) player auction saw franchises battle to secure the services of top domestic and international cricketers for the upcoming season. 

The latest IPL auction took place on December 19, 2023, and it was held at the Coca Cola Arena in Dubai. The auction saw big-money deals and even surprises that many fans are hyped up about. Well, that’s especially the case for avid cricket punters out there.

Now, if you’re starting to prepare your bets for the tournament, reading through a guide to IPL cricket matches could help. But if you still need to get yourself in the know about what happened during the auction, we’ve got you covered.

Let’s take a closer look at the 2024 IPL auction results in this article.

IPL 2024: Most expensive players – who got the big deals?

If Sam Curran was able to bag the biggest deal in the previous season, this year, Mitchell Starc was able to beat his record. The Australian left-arm pacer became the most expensive player in the IPL history when Kolkata Knight Riders purchased him for INR 24.75 crore (US$3.1 million). 

Another Australian player who secured a massive deal is Pat Cummins. Sunrisers Hyderabad purchased this pacer for INR 20.50 crore (US$2.6 million). New Zealand’s right-handed all-rounder was also notably purchased by Chennai Super Kings for INR 14.00 crore (around US$1.6 million).

Meanwhile, Royal Challengers Bangalore added West Indian quick Alzarri Joseph to their roster, purchasing INR 11.50 crore (approximately $1.4 million). Punjab Kings was also another franchise that made a big purchase during the same auction. They were able to secure Indian cricketer Harshal Patel. 

Other players who were signed with contracts over INR 5 crore were Spencer Johnson (Gujarat Titans), Rovman Powell (Rajasthan Royals), Travis Head (Sunrisers Hyderabad), Umesh Yadav (Gujarat Titans), Shivam Mavi (Lucknow Super Giants), and Rilee Rossouw (Punjab Kings).

Major Squad Changes for IPL 2024

Most of the franchises retained many of their players. Gujarat Titans had a short list of players who left the team or were unavailable this year. That includes names like Shivam Mavi, Yash Dayal, and Pradeep Sangwan.

The same goes for Chennai Super Kings as some of the players they released for the upcoming season are Kyle Jamieson, Akash Singh, and Ambati Rayudu. 

It’s also worth noting that English cricket star Ben Stokes also had to be released because he’s still reconvening from multiple injuries. Stokes has undergone knee surgery after the ODI World Cup.

When it comes to retained players, Mumbai Indians is one of the franchises that have a lot of them. That includes Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya. This year, Sharma will no longer serve as the captain of the team as he was replaced by Pandya.

Pandya is making a comeback to MI after having played with Gujarat Titans. Last year, it was already a rumour that he’ll be returning to MI. However, reports suggested Pandya only wanted to do that if he was allowed to captain the team.

While many were surprised about this, it most likely isn’t a big issue. After all, Sharma has already led the team to multiple IPL championships. In addition, based on reports, Sharma left it to the management to decide on the matter.

MI’s head of performance, Mahela Jayawardene, said that appointing Pandya as the captain is simply part of the team’s legacy. It’s them staying true to the team’s philosophy. Mumbai Indians also had to bring in a new bowling coach as Shane Bond has already resigned. He’s replaced by former Sri Lankan cricketer, Lasith Malinga.

When it comes to support staff, Lucknow Super Giants sacked Andy Flower and replaced by Justin Langer. Gautam Gambhir also resigned as LSG’s mentor. There’s no update yet on who will be replacing him.

Sunrisers Hyderabad also decided to change their head coach this year. Brian Lara was sacked and replaced by New Zealand’s cricket coach, Daniel Vettori. Meanwhile, defending champions CSK don’t seem to have any changes on their supporting staff this year as they look to successfully defend their title.

The IPL 2024 promises to be an exciting tournament, with some of the best players in the world competing against each other. The tournament is set to begin on March 22, 2024, and will be played across various venues in India. That includes venues like the Wankhede Stadium, MA Chidambaram Chepauk Stadium, and the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. 

Fans can catch all the action live on Star Sports or stream it on Hotstar.