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The Indian Premier League has been the go-to place for many players and despite a gruelling schedule of close to two months players often enjoy their time in the league. One of the main factors that entice players to come to the IPL has been the money that is being offered to players. Here is a look at the most expensive buys in IPL auction history.
IPL: Most expensive buys in history
| Player | Price (₹) | Team | Year |
| Mitchell Starc | 24.75 crores | Kolkata Knight Riders | 2024 |
| Pat Cummins | 20.50 crores | Sunrisers Hyderabad | 2024 |
| Sam Curran | 18.50 crores | Punjab Kings | 2023 |
| Cameron Green | 17.50 crores | Mumbai Indians | 2023 |
| Ben Stokes | 16.25 crores | Chennai Super Kings | 2023 |
| Chris Morris | 16.25 crores | Rajasthan Royals | 2021 |
| Nicholas Pooran | 16 crores | Lucknow Super Giants | 2023 |
| Yuvraj Singh | 16 crores | Delhi Daredevils | 2015 |
| Pat Cummins | 15.50 crores | Kolkata Knight Riders | 2020 |
| Ishan Kishan | 15.25 crores | Mumbai Indians | 2022 |
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Mitchell Starc (Kolkata Knight Riders)
Mitchell Starc holds the record for being the most expensive buy in the Indian Premier League auction history. The Australian left-arm pacer last played in the cash-rich league in the 2015 season.
Pat Cummins (Sunrisers Hyderabad)
Pat Cummins for a short while held the record for being the most expensive pick in IPL auction history. Cummins has always been the hot commodity and has been among the expensive picks in the history of these auctions.
Sam Curran (Punjab Kings)
Sam Curran held the record for being the most expensive buy in the IPL auction history till the 2024 IPL auction. He was one of the three all-rounders from 2023 to be the most-wanted player for every team. Curran was bought by Punjab Kings for the whopping price of ₹ 18.50 crores. Curran had a pretty ordinary year in the 2023 IPL scoring 276 runs with a strike rate of 135.96. With the ball in hand, the Englishman took 10 wickets in 13 innings while leaking 489 runs at an economy of more than 10 runs per over.
Cameron Green (Mumbai Indians)
Curran is followed by Cameron Green on this list. Green was bought by Mumbai Indians for ₹17.50 crores in the 2023 IPL auction. It was Green’s debut season and he played 16 matches for the five-time champions. Green scored 452 runs in the season including a century. Green in contrast to Curran was pretty impressive in 2023 and had a strike rate of 160.28. With the ball in hand, Green took six wickets at an economy of 9.50 runs per over. Green was traded to Royal Challengers Bangalore for an all-cash deal to accommodate Hardik Pandya from Gujarat Titans.
Ben Stokes (Chennai Super Kings)
Ben Stokes was the third most expensive all-rounder from the 2023 IPL auction when he was bought by Chennai Super Kings for ₹ 16.25 crores. Unlike Curran and Green, Stokes only played two matches for the 2023 champions. In those two matches, Stokes scored 15 runs and bowled only one over where he conceded 18 runs. The English test skipper was released by CSK as he won’t play in IPL 2024 due to his knee surgery.
Chris Morris (Rajasthan Royals)
Another all-rounder on this list is Chris Morris. The South African all-rounder was bought by Rajasthan Royals for ₹ 16.25 crores in the 2021 auction. Morris played 11 matches in 2021 and scored 67 runs at a strike rate of 136.73. With the ball too, Morris was disappointing. Morris bowled 41 overs picking up 15 wickets but conceding 376 runs. It was the last season for Morris as he was released by the Royals before the mega auction in 2022.
Nicholas Pooran (Lucknow Super Giants)
The trend for expensive buys in 2023 did not end with all-rounders as wicket-keeper batter, Nicholas Pooran getting bought by Lucknow Super Giants for ₹ 16 crores. Pooran had a good year with the bat for LSG. In 15 matches, he scored 358 runs at an average of 29.83 at a strike rate of 172.95 scoring two half-centuries.
Yuvraj Singh (Delhi Daredevils)
Yuvraj Singh is the most expensive Indian player in IPL auction history. Yuvraj was bought for ₹ 16 crores by Delhi Daredevils (Delhi Capitals) in 2015. Yuvraj has always been one of the top buys at auctions. Before the 2015 IPL auction, Yuvraj was bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore for ₹ 14 crores in 2014. In the 2015 IPL, Yuvraj had an average season scoring 248 runs at a strike rate of 118 while with the ball he only bowled nine overs and took just one wicket.
Pat Cummins (Kolkata Knight Riders)
Australian skipper, Pat Cummins has also enjoyed the joy of being one of the most expensive players in the IPL auction. Cummins was bought for ₹15.50 crores in 2020 by two-time champions, Kolkata Knight Riders. The Australian was with KKR in 2020 and 2021 for the same amount. In those two seasons, Cummins took 21 wickets at an economy of 8.19 runs per over. With the bat in hand, Cummins scored 239 runs including two half-centuries at a strike rate of 140.58.
Ishan Kishan (Mumbai Indians)
Ishan Kishan is the final player on this list. The wicket-keeper batter was bought by Mumbai Indians for ₹ 15.25 crores in 2022. The price tag pressure has been too much for Kishan. Kishan scored 418 runs in 14 matches in 2022 at an average of 32.15 but had a poor strike rate of just 120.11. The 2023 season wasn’t much of an improvement, Kishan scored 454 runs at an average of 30.27 with a strike rate of 142.77.