Thursday, December 26, 2024

IPL auction: James Anderson goes unsold but Jacob Bethell and Sam Curran among England players signed

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James Anderson missed out on an IPL deal but Will Jacks, Jacob Bethell and Sam Curran were among the English players to be signed on the second and final day of the auction.

Anderson, England’s all-time leading Test wicket-taker, entered the auction despite not playing a T20 game in a decade and was hoping for his first experience of the marquee tournament.

However, the 42-year-old – who retired from Test cricket in July and is now England’s fast bowling mentor – went unsold in Saudi Arabia with none of the 10 teams tempted by his reserve price of £115,000 as they finalise their squads for the 2025 edition.

Indian Vaibhav Suryavanshi, 13, became the youngest player signed in an IPL auction after being selected by Rajasthan Royals, weeks on from smashing a 58-ball hundred for India U19s against Australia U19s in an unofficial Test in Chennai.

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Will Jacks was bought by Mumbai Indians for £500,000 in the auction

Jacks and Bethell among England players bought

England white-ball batter Will Jacks was bought by Mumbai Indians for £500,000 and will have Reece Topley as a team-mate after the seamer was purchased by the five-time champions for £71,000.

All-rounder Sam Curran has returned to Chennai Super Kings in a £230,000 deal, two years after being signed by Punjab Kings for a then-record fee of £1.85m.

Bethell and Carse, currently with England’s Test squad in New Zealand ahead of the series opener in Christchurch from Thursday, were also snapped up in Jeddah on Monday.

Jacob Bethell, England, ODI cricket (PA Images)
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Jacob Bethell has been signed by Royal Challengers Bangalore and will join Phil Salt and Liam Livingstone at the franchise

Batting all-rounder Bethell was signed by Royal Challengers Bangalore for £246,000, joining Phil Salt and Liam Livingstone at the franchise after they were purchased on Sunday.

Fast bowler Carse went to Sunrisers Hyderabad for £95,000, while all-rounder Jamie Overton joined Curran at Super Kings after being acquired for £143,000.

The 2025 IPL – which will be live in full on Sky Sports – is set to start on March 14 and run until the final on May 25, although the fixtures have not yet been announced.

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