Social media has been brimming with activity ever since the hammer first came down at the IPL auction today. Players, franchises and their fan-bases have spammed every popular social-media platform with opinions, news and messages on the hot-transactions from the mega-event in Kolkata. It sure has been a busy couple of hours for every member of the global cricketing fraternity. Credit for the excitement must go to auctioneer Hugh Edmeades, who has been doing a commendable job with his inviting voice and his auction-hammer-the little tool which has helped decide the fate of many international stars today.
Speaking of this iconic hammer, the hammer landed its first blow of the evening at the very first candidate of the auction, Chris Lynn. Surprisingly, not a lot of teams appeared to be particularly interested in snapping-up his power-packed services. Not even his ex-franchise Kolkata Knight Riders. Many had expected KKR to bid for Lynn and re-avail him for a lower price. Unfortunately, no one at the KKR table even seemed to bat an eye on his mention. Mumbai Indians raised their paddle just in time, and, quite unceremoniously, they acquired the leading run-scorer of this year’s Abu-Dhabi T10 league.
Of course, many had expected Mumbai to bid for Lynn, especially after their ex-player Yuvraj Singh had praised him. Yuvi had expressed his surprise in a tweet at the KKR management when they decided to let go-off the hard-hitting Aussie batsman. Lynn, however, feels quite the homecoming walking into his brand new franchise. Moments after his purchase, Lynn posted on twitter how excited he was to join the MI Paltan. More comically, he also conveyed in his tweet that he wouldn’t have to face star-Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah anymore. Here is what he tweeted:
@mipaltan ✅
Great City ✅
Quality Franchise ✅
Flat wicket ✅
Don’t have to play against @Jaspritbumrah93 ✅Can’t wait for @IPL 2020
— Chris Lynn (@lynny50) December 19, 2019
Jasprit Bumrah responds with hilarious reply
Bumrah was quick to reciprocate the cheeky camaraderie the MI team is famous for. The ace MI pacer welcomed Lynn to the team, but not without reminding him that he would still have to face him in nets. Have a look at the tweet:
Haha, welcome to the team! @lynny50 You’re still going to have to face me in the nets. 😋
— Jasprit Bumrah (@Jaspritbumrah93) December 19, 2019
The IPL auctions 2020 have just come to an end now. Australia’s Pat Cummins was the most expensive buy with KKR investing INR 15.50 Crores on him. KXIP’s Glenn Maxwell (10.75 Cr) and RCB’s Chris Morris (10 Cr) were some of the other iconic buys. Among Indians, leg-spinner Piyush Chawla went for the highest price as Chennai Super Kings purchased him for INR 6.75 Cr.
Which team do you think made the best purchases in the auction? Which team looks the strongest contenders for the 2020 title. Let us know what you think in the comments.