Jan. 9: If the first auction in 2008 was all about foreign flavour and beefing up the squads with an array of international stars, the 2011 event has been all about Indians. Of course, established performers have been sought after but there have been instances of relative unknowns who have vaulted from obscurity into the limelight. Australian cricketer Daniel Christian, roped in by the Deccan Chargers for a whopping $900,00 (Rs 4.08 cr) tops the group.
Plying his wares in far-away South Australia, Christian’s life changed instantly on Sunday at the IPL-4 auctions. Opening at modest price of $50,000, Christian would never have imagined his worth as it was revealed on the day. A utility cricketer, capable of medium-pace bowling and batting, Christian was pursued relentlessly by the Chargers and Kochi in the initial rounds.
With inputs from coach Darren Lehmann, the Chargers went for the bloke with gusto and when Kochi dropped out of the race at the $450k mark, in entered the Delhi Daredevils. The Chargers and Daredevils have shown a similar interest in the same set of players during this auction and bid for the Aussie furiously before the gong settled in favour of the Chargers.
If Saurabh Tiwary was the biggest gainer on the opening day netting 16 times his base price, Christian went even better going at 18 times his reserve price, but it was an investment worth the money. The 27-year-old Christian has just played three T20s for Australia, but since his move to South Australia from New South Wales, has been in rich form.
In the last season the Chargers had gone in with Mitchell Marsh but Christian can be more handy in both the roles. “We went for him because Christian is a fantastic all-rounder. He is worth the money. He is a good player. The reason behind spending such a huge amount was unpredictability of prices for bidding. We are happy to have him,” said Gayatri Reddy of Deccan Chargers.
“Christian is a good fast bowler and a decent batsman. He is also a brilliant fielder,” added Gayatri. Becoming their third most expensive player behind Dale Steyn and Cameron White, Christian will have to repay the management’s faith in his abilities. And if the Aussie can live up to the expectations, he surely, will be on the fast track to success.