HITS, MISSES AND SURPRISES FROM IPL AUCTION 2016

Going into the Indian Premier League auction 2016 on Saturday (February 6), the likes of Shane Watson and Yu Singh were expected to fetch a fat pay cheque. Watson eventually went to Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rs 9.5 crore while Yuvraj went to Sunrisers Hyderabad for Rs. 7 crore but not before the franchises surprised everyone by not going after him straight away. Mumbai Indians went for him after a lengthy delay before Bangalore and Hyderabad joined in.

It was interesting to see that the franchises were a bit cautious throughout the day and while there was aggressive bidding in some cases, it didn't stretch past the Rs. 10 Crore mark - a mark breached quite a few times last year.

"Having been in this in the last eight years the franchises have become very smart. They know when to enter a bid and when to leave. They know what team they want and they get it," explained TA Sekar, the Delhi Daredevils coach. 

Preity Zinta too had the same version to offer. "Franchises here, who have been here the longest, understand that you play to a plan and not bid for the players."

But the auction was much more than who fetched what. There were winners, some bystanders, a few surprises and a few lucky steals.

The winners

These are good times from Pawan Negi. He has done well for the Delhi state side and was named in the squad for the Asia Cup and the ICC World T20 2016. To make things better, he was bought by Delhi for a whopping Rs. 8.5 crore - the second highest bid for the day.

It was a good day for Jos Buttler and Chris Morris as well. The England wicket-keeper was bought by Mumbai for Rs. 3.8 crore and we are all aware of what he's capable of.However, a few people were a bit surprised when, Morris who had a base price of Rs. 50 lakh, was bought by Delhi for Rs. 7 crore.

"We feel Morris is a very good bowler, who can bat a bit. Everyone thinks, T20 is about batsmen, but if you have a good bowling side you can restrict the opposition under 150 and then chase it down easily. Morris was very much in our plans," said Sekar, explaining why Delhi went after him.