England Players were Overpriced at IPL 4 Auctions, Suggest KXIP and RCB

Although the two formats are like chalk and cheese, there was unexpected anticipation that the England cricketers would be in business after winning the Ashes. However, the IPL franchisees had thier own take on why the England cricketers fared so poorly in the IPL 4 auctions.

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Unlike the previous IPL seasons, the mood was more business and less about flashiness. Kevin Pietersen, Dmitri Mascarenhas and Owais Shah were lucky to get IPL 4 contracts when the majority of the England cricketers were largely ignored by the IPL franchisees.

However, at the press conference concluding the second and final day of the IPL 4 auctions, Kings XI Punjab owner, Ness Wadia, and the Royal Challengers Bangalore owner, Vijay Mallya, suggested that it was not the late No Objection Certificate ( NOC ) from the ECB that was to blame for the lack of interest in the England cricketers.

Hectic cricket schedules and subsequent availability was cited as one of the reasons that prevented the franchisees from putting all their money on the England cricketers despite the fact that they have been on the rise with the ICC World Twenty20 2010 win as well as the recent Ashes success.

However, Vijay Mallya suggested and Wadia agreed that the England cricketers were a tad overpriced which also, prevented the franchisees from strategizing to use them in their team composition. Mallya suggested a more aggressive pricing strategy could have motivated the franchisees to go for them.

After the high of the Ashes, the England cricketers must consider this as a bit of a dampener.