Leading players from around the world enjoyed bumper pay days at the DP World International League T20 auction in Dubai.
But Pakistan’s top stars were recruited at bargain basement prices as they continue to be largely overlooked by Indian franchise owners.
Babar Azam has scored more T20 international runs than anyone in history, and was one of the best-known players in the auction.
He was purchased for his base rate of $80,000 by Desert Vipers, who faced no competing bids.
The Vipers, who are owned by the American businessman Avram Glazer, also brought back fellow Pakistanis Fakhar Zaman, Shadab Khan and Naseem Shah for their base prices.
While their pay days represent healthy salaries for a month of cricket, they paled in comparison to some of the bids made for players from elsewhere.
Fazalhaq Farooqi, from Afghanistan, earned the biggest payday in the short history of the competition so far, as he went to MI Emirates for $380,000.
Within a dizzying few minutes, England’s Liam Livingstone had fetched $350,000, Afghanistan’s Rahmanullah Gurbaz went for $310,000, and $300,000 was spent on Faf du Plessis, the former South Africa captain.
A number of UAE players also earned substantially more than the Pakistan players. Muhammad Waseem, who was the leading local player in each of the first four seasons of the competition, landed a massive bid worth $210,000.
It smashed the record for a UAE player, set a season earlier when fast bowler Junaid Siddique joined Sharjah Warriorz for $170,000.
Alishan Sharafu went for $110,000, while Aayan Khan and Mohammed Rohid each landed bids of $95,000.
The trend was typical last year, when an auction for the UAE’s T20 franchise tournament was staged for the first time.
The Vipers were able to sweep up a number of Pakistan internationals for their base rates, as the Indian owners of the other five teams ignored them.
It took until late into the eight-hour bidding process for Abu Dhabi Knight Riders – who are owned by Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan – to alter the situation.
In the rapid-fire bidding at the end, they landed Pakistan mystery spinner Usman Tariq for his base price of $80,000.
It turned out to be a significant advantage for the Vipers: the Pakistani players formed the nucleus of the side which won the title for the first time last season.
“We’re delighted with the picks we’ve secured, including from a continuity perspective,” Phil Oliver, the chief executive of the Vipers, said.
“To have Fakhar Zaman and Naseem Shah back is very exciting for us to add back to the squad from the team that won it last year.
“To add Babar in is very exciting. He is a very high-quality player who we know well. He knows the UAE well, and he’s an excellent pick up at the top of the order. We can’t wait to welcome him to the Desert Vipers family.”
With franchises able to sign just four players each before the auction, their fortunes in the new campaign will likely by hugely dependent on what unfolded at the ICC Academy on Thursday.
Because of the right to match feature of the auction – where teams were entitled to retain some players they had had previously by matching the bids for them – they were able to maintain some continuity.
For example, the likes of Fakhar, Naseem, Khuzaima Tanveer, Vriitya Aravind, David Payne, and Sanjay Pahal all ended up back with the Vipers, where they won the title last season.
“When we see the quality of players that have been assembled, I think it’s shaping up to be the most competitive tournament from a player quality perspective,” Oliver said.
“All the six teams look very strong. It’s a testament to the strength of the league and what has been built here over the four seasons to date.
“It’s going to be the most competitive league so far. We’re going to have our work cut out to defend our title because there’s a lot of exciting, high-quality players from all around the world.
“It really is a global league, that’s got some of the best talent from every corner of the world, so we look forward to get going in November.”
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