Highest paid players of IPL 2017

With the IPL 10 in full swing let us have a look on how much the players get rewarded for competing in one of the most famous cricket leagues in the world. The auction for the 10 edition of the IPL did not let down in terms of the money spent on the players. Many surprise deals caught the attention of the media over the likes of Ben Stokes and Tymal Mills, two Englishmen who went for unexpectedly hefty bids. There were some disappointments with the missing out of regular IPL players like Cheteshwar Pujara, Pragyan Ojha, and Brad Hogg to name a few.

10. AB de Villiers (RCB): INR 9.5 crores

Arguably the most exciting player in the world of cricket currently. He was retained by the Royal Challengers Bangalore team for a fee of INR 9.5 crores for this season. The ODI No.1 batsman has been in the RCB side for 5 seasons from 2011. He has already shown a glimpse of his brilliance this season against the Sunrisers Hyderabad where he smashed 89 off just 41 deliveries.

9. Suresh Raina (GL): INR 9.5 crores

The captain of the Gujarat Lions for this season was bought for 9.5 crores. Suresh Raina had been very instrumental in the middle order for the Chennai Super Kings in the yester seasons of the IPL. He currently holds the record for highest runs scored in the IPL overall. A strike rate of 140 for over 130 games certainly made him a hot property for the GL team.

8. Kieron Pollard (MI): INR 9.7 crores

Kieron Pollard has proved to be the most ferocious all-rounders from the Caribbean in the recent years. His strike rate of close to 150 makes him the most dependable finishers a team can have. He has been a part of the Mumbai Indians side in the IPL for the last 7 seasons and would continue to play for them with a fee of 9.7 crores.

7. Gautam Gambhir (KKR): INR 10 crores

Gautam Gambhir has been the leader for the Kolkata Knight Riders team from 2011 since he was bought for a then record fee of 11 crores from the Delhi Daredevils. He has led his team to lift the IPL trophy twice in 2012 and in 2014. He has been retained by the KKR side for this season and is looking to be a fair contender for the orange cap.

6. Rohit Sharma (MI): INR 11.5 crores

The captain of the Mumbai Indians was retained by them for a fee of 11.5 crores in this edition. He is probably the most consistent openers for the Indian side and has proved his worth time and again in the IPL. He was an integral part of the MI team when they lifted the trophy in 2015 and this season looks very favourable with 5 wins out of first 6 matches.

5. Tymal Mills (RCB): INR 12 crores

You might not have heard about this player in the major international circuit. Tymal Mills made his debut for England in 2016. His performance against India was what attracted the franchises of IPL towards this new talent. He was bought for 12 crores by the RCB side from a starting base price of 50 lakhs.

4. Shikhar Dhawan (SRH): INR 12.5 crores

The solid opener of the strong Sunrisers Hyderabad side was retained by them for this season coming out of their victory in the 2016 edition. He has proved to be instrumental for them in the past but has failed to perform in the last two seasons. The SRH owners would be expecting a lot better performance from him this year.

3. MS Dhoni (RPS): INR 12.5 crores

Mr Dependable and the highest paid player from the first edition of the IPL was retained by the RPS side this season. His skill as a wicketkeeper with a lighting pair of gloves needs no introduction. He is arguably the most successful captain of the Indian side and the most lethal finishers of them all. He has to his name the most number of victories in IPL as a captain.

2. Ben Stokes (RPS): INR 14.5 crores

The biggest surprise of this year’s auctions was the bid of 14.5 crores from the Rising Pune Supergiants for the Englishman Ben Stokes. The English all-rounder performed well against India and was spotted by many teams. He has emerged as the highest-paid foreign player in the history of IPL.

1. Virat Kohli (RCB): INR 15 crores

Virat Kohli was the orange cap holder of the 9th season with a record number of runs to his name. His aggressive nature and vigour are quite evident in his style of play on the ground. He currently ranks second just behind Suresh Raina in the overall runs scored in IPL. He started this season with a shoulder injury but now is out as a captain for the RCB.