After going unsold in the initial round, out of favour India cricketers Prithvi Shaw and Sarfaraz Khan were bought in the third accelerated round of the Indian Premier League players’ auction in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.
Delhi Capitals purchased India’s in-form Prithvi Shaw at his base price of Rs 75 lakh. The Chennai Super Kings paid Rs 75 lakh to acquire Sarfaraz Khan, who hit a 22-ball 73 in a Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy match on Tuesday for Mumbai.
In the lead-up to the auction, Sarfaraz, 28, bolstered his cause with an incredible 64 off 25 balls against Haryana, which helped Mumbai win the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy by four wickets.
In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy this year, Sarfaraz amassed 256 runs from six innings with a strike-rate of 182.85, averaging 64, before Tuesday’s knock.
Before withdrawing from the competition against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), who acquired the services of the India all-rounder at Rs 7 crore, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) also pursued Venkatesh Iyer.
The Kolkata Knight Riders paid a record-breaking Rs 25.20 crore for top Australian all-rounder Cameron Green and Rs 18 crore for Sri Lankan bowler Matheesha Pathirana.
Kolkata Knight Riders stepped into the bidding for Matheesha Pathirana after Delhi Capitals and Lucknow Super Giants dropped out following a fierce duel between the two franchises. Coming into the auction with a base price of Rs 2 crore, Pathirana went on to become the most expensive Sri Lankan ever sold at an IPL auction.
In 21 Twenty20 Internationals, Pathirana has claimed 31 wickets at an average of 18.25, including two four-wicket hauls. In 100 Twenty20 matches, the right-arm speedster has claimed 133 wickets at an average of 21.40. Pathirana took 47 wickets at an average of more than 21 for the Chennai Super Kings in 32 IPL games. He took 12 wickets at an average of 32.61 in 13 games during the 2025 season.
Seasoned left-arm pacer from Bangladesh, Mustafizur Raham was sold to the Kolkata Knight Riders for Rs 9.20 crore.
In the franchise’s first purchase at Tuesday’s mini auction, Australian Cooper Connolly was acquired by Punjab Kings for Rs 3 crore.
The Delhi Capitals purchased big-hitting South African batsman David Miller for his base price of Rs 2 crore, but New Zealand swashbuckler Devon Conway, whose base price was also Rs 2 crore, went unsold.
England batter Ben Duckett was also acquired by the Delhi Capitals for Rs 2 crore.
For a base price of Rs 1 crore, seasoned South African opener Quinton de Kock rejoined his former team, the Mumbai Indians.
While Anrich Nortje, who came with a base price of Rs 2 crore, was signed by LSG, Spencer Johnson remained unsold.
After going unsold earlier in the day, England’s daring batter Liam Livingstone was finally signed by Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) for Rs 13 crores.
With 7,496 runs at an average of 28.18 and a strike rate of 144.93 in 330 T20 matches, including two hundreds and 39 half-centuries, and 143 wickets at an average of little over 25, Livingstone has a wealth of T20 expertise.
Livingstone has amassed 1,051 runs at a strike rate of over 158 in 49 IPL games for the Rajasthan Royals (RR), Punjab Kings (PBKS), and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). He has also claimed 13 wickets.
In 60 Twenty20 Internationals, Livingstone has amassed 955 runs for England at an average of 25.13 and a strike rate of 148.98. In addition to 43 wickets, he has one century and two fifties.
Despite being a member of RCB’s winning team the previous season, Livingstone only managed to score 112 runs in eight games. He comes after an outstanding Vitality Blast season for Lancashire, where he amassed 260 runs at an average of 52 and a strike rate above 176, along with six wickets, and a successful Hundred season for Birmingham Phoenix, when he scored 241 runs at an average of 40.16 and took seven wickets.
