The youngsters were supposed to be the cynosure at the Karnataka Premier League auction. But what unfolded was a complete opposite of the prediction as seasoned campaigners ruled the roost.
In a big surprise, senior paceman Abhimanyu Mithun emerged the costliest buy. The Karnataka bowler, who had a good tournament last year with both bat and ball (9 wickets), was picked up by Shivamogga Lions for a record price of Rs 8,30,000 in Pool A. Mithun's buy surpassed last year's joint highest price of Rs 7.2 lakh, offered for Amit Verma and K Gowtham.
Comeback man Robin Uthappa was expectedly in huge demand and the stylish right-hand batsman was sold for a whopping Rs 7,90,000 to Kalyani Bengaluru Blasters. For the second straight year, there was fierce bidding for Verma and the dependable left-hand batsman was roped in by Mysuru Warriors for Rs 7,60,000.
Mithun's value in the shortest format is undisputable. The 28-year-old's ability to use the long handle to good effect comes handy in pressure situations. His 12-ball 32 that put Bijapur Bulls in the final last season is a case in point.
Shimoga and Bangalore showed early interest in Mithun. At Rs 5.7 lakh, Ballari Tuskers jumped in the race as Bangalore fell out. Both Tuskers and Shivamogga were in no mood to stop but it was the latter who eventually sealed the deal.
From Pool B, Nidesh M, a prolific scorer in KSCA leagues, attracted the highest bid. The 31-year-old, the fifth highest-scorer last season with 193 runs, went to Belagavi Panthers for Rs 5,85,000.
Among the youngsters, T Pradeep expectedly created flutters. The young right-arm medium pacer came to limelight following his stellar show in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and the auction turned interesting when his name was announced. Like in the case of Mithun, it was Shivamogga and Bengaluru who were keen on picking Pradeep. At Rs 2.1 lakh, two new teams -- Ballari Tuskers and Mysuru Warriors --got into the act as the bidding continued. The Tuskers were in no mood to stop and they got their man for Rs 6,50,000.
Experience over promise appeared to be the theme as the auction saw high bids for popular names like Rongsten Jonathan (Rs 5.45 lakh, Shimoga), K B Pawan (Rs 4.55 lakh, Mysuru Warriors), K P Appanna (Rs 3.85 lakh, Bijapur Bulls), Suneel Raju (Rs 3.50 lakh, Bijapur Bulls) and Abrar Kazi (Rs 3.50 lakh, Ballari Tuskers).
Expectedly, the franchises didn't risk buying marquee players like Shreyas Gopal and R Samarth as they could miss the league owing to their likely national commitments while the other big names went for low amounts. Hubli Tigers dared to bid for Mayank Agarwal and they picked the right-hander for base price of Rs 25,000. Talented off-spinner K Gowtham's case was no different. Mysuru Warriors were keen on the 29-year-old and they bagged him for Rs 25,000. Bangalore Blasters paid Rs 30,000 for the talented pacer Prasidh Krishna, who impressed in the last IPL, playing for Kolkata Knight Riders.