IPL 2023: Top 5 steal deals of mini auction

The intriguing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 auction concluded in Kochi after delivering some intense bidding battles among all the ten franchises. A total of 80 players were acquired by the franchises on the day of the event.

Taking advantage of the event, all franchises splurged a lot of money to find their perfect team combinations to go ahead in the sixteenth edition of the IPL. 

In the second round of the marquee event, names like Sam Curran, Cameron Green, and Ben Stokes attracted big bids as expected.

With a hefty sum of INR 18.5 crore, the English all-rounder Sam Curran became the most expensive player in the history of the auction. However, some franchises got a few steal deals too, which could prove to be beneficial for them in the upcoming tournament.

Here are the top-five steal deals of this year’s mini-auction:

5. Sikandar Raza (Punjab Kings)

This year has been incredible for Zimbabwe cricketer Sikandar Raza. The veteran looked solid and took his team to the Super 12 in the T20 World Cup 2022.

In the Super 12 round too, he contributed with his outstanding spell of 4-0-25-3 against Pakistan to register a historic victory for his side in the T20 World Cup 2022. With this notable performance, he grabbed the attention of many followers of the sport.

Before the end of the year, his work paid off and he got picked up by Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the IPL 2023 auction at his base price of INR 50 lakhs. For the 36-year-old, the upcoming tournament will be a golden opportunity to deliver solid all-round performances to his team and become an important face of the league. 

For the franchise Punjab Kings, his vast experience and skills might play a vital role in lifting the team’s performance. The veteran, in his nine years of T20I career has played 66 games and scored 1259 runs at a strike rate of 128.86. With the ball, he has picked up 38 wickets at a decent economy of 7.18.